Love or Hate?
by Firenzie
Summary: It's a story involving Taichi, Sora, Yamato, and love and hate confusion. Sora tells Mimi, Hikari, and Miyako about her feelings for Taichi (good or bad?), and how they came to be that way. PART 6!: Sora finally admits it -- love or hate?
1. Mimi's Slumber Party

Love or Hate? (Part 1)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: A lame title for another poorly written drama-ish fic from me...but what do you really expect of my fics but that anyway? I got this idea from reading "Home For Christmas: Gennai's Angels" by White Tiger Lady. It's one of my more dramatic romances, which ultimately means... Run and hide! Dramas are one of my weakest points, though I have tons, such as titles (just look at how un/non/in/whatever is the prefix for not original this one is; I had a brain fart, but I think it's un), endings, scary stories, humor, and many, many, many, MANY more. Hey, guess what? I finally have a New Year's Resolution for the first time in my life. I will *NOT* insult my fics, no matter how bad they are. That means much less rambling from me in the new 'real' 2nd millenium! And it also means I won't be successful with my first resolution ever. Anywho, this is more soap-opera-ish than my normal fluffy fics. Except in the beginning, where it's SO typical-teenager-girly-girl-slumber-party-ishness that it made me sick while writing it. Oh, and it's a Taiora...or is it? *The "Twilight Zone" theme song plays* Heh, I'm a loser. Ever since that one play at our school -- you know what? I swear I'll shut up now, and add 'stop rambling in author's notes' to my resolution list. Now, please, read the fic!  
  
Disclaimer: Tai, Sora, all the rest of them...they belong to me! Yup, I got them for Christmas...in my dreams. Actually, in my dreams, I got a Razor scooter and a robotic dog (not the cool Sony kind)...am I seriously the only child in the world who doesn't want either of those? However, in my good dreams, I got a PlayStation2 and a really good computer... But what I really got was all clothes, a book, and some money. But my brother got a singing fish, so I actually think mine were pretty okay. Owning Digimon would be the greatest gift though. Hear that, Toei, Saban? If you ever get sick of 'em, just pass it onto me...just kidding. Ha, now I'll be rambling in the disclaimer instead of the author's notes...  
  
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Four teenager girls were in a huge, all pink room, giggling and gossiping, painting their nails, braiding hair, and having a typical girl slumber party. It was "Princess" Mimi Tachikawa's first birthday since she had moved back to Japan from New York, and she wanted it to be the biggest and best girl party ever...without boys! However, the subject of boys was bound to come up many, many, many times during the night. It hadn't once yet, though, but it definitely would. Yes indeed, soon it would.  
  
Sora Takenouchi sat on Mimi's comfortable canopy bed, sifting through her magazine rack. Seventeen, Teen People, Cosmopolitan, Vogue, and tons more fashion and teen magazines were all she owned. She came across a Reader's Digest, and wondered how it possibly was in there. "Mimi, do you have anything that isn't about clothes, makeup, hair, style, and fashion?" she asked.  
  
"Of course not!" Mimi said with a laugh. "What did you expect? Plus, that's the theme of this party! What are you doing there, Sora? Don't tell me you haven't had a facial yet!" Mimi's face was coated in green goop.  
  
"What do we need facials for?" she asked. "To reduce wrinkles and keep us looking young? We're only teenagers!"  
  
"Sora, you're sixteen, the oldest of all of us and the only one with a license to drive," Miyako Inoue said, "and yet you're the one who doesn't care a bit about anything girly."  
  
"I can be girly," she argued. "Just because I'm not caked in makeup, drenched in perfume, with wild nail polish colors, and wearing high heels and pink, glitzy, glittery, glamorous outfits doesn't mean I'm not a girl. I'm just not into this kind of stuff."  
  
"You wear skirts and some makeup now, which is a lot better than your tomboy look, but it's still not enough," Mimi replied, putting the nail polish brush down, holding her hand up, and blowing on her nails. "Come here and we'll give you a makeover."  
  
"But I don't want a makeover," she protested, hugging one of Mimi's soft, goose feather down pillows. "I don't care about looking chic and fashionable. I just like comfortable, casual clothes...and I'm not saying I want to go around wearing baggy jean overalls and flannel shirts"--Mimi shuddered--"but I don't want to kill myself wearing spike heels, a skimpy dress, and a thong. I don't believe beauty should make you hurt."  
  
"She's so misguided," Hikari Yagami said with a sigh. "Sora, what are we going to do with you?"  
  
"Just let me stay with my occasional skirts, the body splash every so once in a while, lip gloss, and the tiniest bit of eye shadow," she told them.  
  
"You shouldn't be looking quite so cute and bubblegum-ish and innocent," Mimi said. "Would it kill you to look more sexy and stunning?"  
  
"Sexy and stunning don't belong in the same sentence with my name," Sora told them, "unless you mean that I'm not."  
  
"We just HAVE to give you a makeover," Miyako begged. "Don't you want to impress whoever you have a crush on?"  
  
"Wait a second," Hikari cut in. She temporarily stopped braiding Miyako's long, violet hair. "Who DOES she have a crush on?"  
  
"Yeah, Sora," Mimi said thoughtfully. "You never told us who you liked, even though we know that Hikari obviously loves Takeru, Miyako has a crush on Ken, and I like -- and I like -- well, who do you like, Sora?"  
  
"Just hold it there, 'Princess,'" she said sarcastically. "You never bothered to mention who YOU had your eye on."  
  
"She's right!" Miyako cried. "Oh, Mimi, who do you like? Is it Michael? Is it Yamato?"  
  
Mimi blushed deeply, but the heavy cream covered it. "No, it's not Michael or Yamato...even though Yamato is really hot and I typically go for blondes...but..."  
  
"But?" all three girls prompted.  
  
She felt her face getting hotter...if she had cucumbers on her eyes, they'd probably start to sizzle. "But I'm in love with--"  
  
"Oooh, LOVE!" Hikari squealed. "Come on, tell us, Mimi! We won't tell, you can trust us! We're your best friends! Please?"  
  
"Okay, you wouldn't ever expect this from me...since I normally go for the hottest, best looking guys, right? But I'm not as shallow as everyone thinks"--(Do you know how hard it was for me to write that?)--"and well, I always thought he was kind of cute in his own nerdy way... Actually now, he's very hot, but it wasn't that way in the beginning..."  
  
"In the beginning of when?" Miyako asked.  
  
"Mimi, are you talking about one of our former Digidestined members?" Sora asked, a sparkle in her ruby eyes. "Nerdy, huh? Oh, Mimi, you're in love with Jyou Kido!"  
  
All the girls shrieked in excitement. "Mimi loves Jyou!"  
  
The bright scarlet on her face was almost showing. "Okay, okay, I'm in love with Jyou," she admitted. "But who do YOU like, Sora?" she asked once again, trying to tear the attention away from herself, for once.  
  
Sora wasn't blushing; in fact, she remained rather neutral. The grin did leave her face though, and she pretended to be interested in the magazines again.  
  
"Please, Sora, *I* confessed who I liked!" Mimi whined. "You HAVE to tell us! It's only fair."  
  
"But I don't like anyone," she said quietly.  
  
"What a load of crap," Miyako remarked rudely. "Oh, Sora, that is such bull. Just admit who you like already and we'll stop pestering you about it."  
  
"But it IS true," she said softly, hugging the pillow tighter. Her eyes began to get distant. "In fact, I haven't loved anyone in a while."  
  
"LOVE?" Hikari asked again. "You're in love too?"  
  
"She's probably in love with someone like Yamato," Miyako guessed. "The blonde-haired, blue-eyed heart throb seems like her type."  
  
"You're confusing me with Hikari," Sora mumbled.  
  
"Could it be Koushiro?" Hikari asked. "She doesn't seem to go for looks only. The intelligent kind seems more of her type."  
  
"No, that's Miyako! I don't have a type!" she insisted. "I don't even know my type myself! Because I don't like anyone!"  
  
"She's lying when she says it's no one. That is SO the typical approach," Mimi said matter-of-factly. "She would never tell me who she liked, especially in the Digiworld. She says 'no one' every time."  
  
"But I mean it this time!" she said desperately. "Just give it up, okay?"  
  
"Ha, she really doesn't know us, does she?" Hikari laughed. "Sora, if you tell us, it'll be so much easier. Or else we'll have to spend all night getting it out of you. And we won't stop, will we, girls?"  
  
"NOPE!" Mimi and Miyako chorused.  
  
Hikari studied Sora's quite blank face very intensely. "Now who are you in love with? Hmmm..." She gazed into the older girl's eyes, trying to read her mind. Then she closed her makeup covered eyes and concentrated deeply. "Oh my god, I've got it!" she exclaimed after a while.  
  
"You do?" Mimi and Miyako, still speaking as one, asked in incredulity. "Really?"  
  
"Really!" she said. "Oh my gosh, why didn't I think of this sooner? It was SO obvious!"  
  
"Who is it?" Mimi asked eagerly.  
  
"Yes, 'Kari, spill it!" Miyako added.  
  
"The one Sora loves, the one she has ALWAYS loved, is none other than--" She gave a dramatic pause for suspense, and Mimi and Miyako held their breaths in. "My older brother, Taichi!"  
  
"OF COURSE!" Mimi and Miyako screamed.  
  
"Why couldn't we figure it out earlier?" Mimi said. "That's the most obvious one besides Takeru and Hikari!"  
  
"Taichi, DUH!" Miyako said. "I didn't even have to be with you the first time you went to the Digiworld to figure that one out!"  
  
All three girls looked towards Sora anticipatingly (ha, I made that word up, but you get the point). They expected to see a huge red blush spread across her face. A shy, but wide, and embarrassed smile. And what did they see?  
  
A deadpan. Her face was more void of emotion than a robot's ever could be. It was totally impossible to perceive any sort of expression on her face. Except for that fact that her eyes, which always held the true source of feelings, looked quite...misty? The faintest glimmer of tears lined her ruby eyes. Was she...sad?  
  
However, the girls could not understand it. Maybe she was feeling crestfallen because they had discovered her secret, maybe one that she wanted to keep that way. Possibly her feelings for Taichi were so deep and emotional that she didn't wish it to be treated like mindless, girlish bathroom gossip. What was it that had made her so suddenly sad? The mention of 'crush' had already brought some depression to her when they first brought it up. What was the matter?  
  
Instead of trying to find out, they kept on bugging her.  
  
Mimi broke out into a childish song of, "Sora and Taichi sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in a baby carriage!"  
  
"Mrs. Sora Takenouchi Yagami," Hikari noticed. "That sounds really nice. Wouldn't that be terrific, Sora? We'd be sisters-in-law!"  
  
Miyako giggled wildly. "Sora Takenouchi, do you take Taichi Yagami to be your lawfully wedded husband?"  
  
To their surprise, Sora gave a reply. But it was too faint to hear or make heads or tails of.  
  
"Repeat that again," Mimi gushed.  
  
Sora cleared her throat and brushed the back of her hand against her eyes. They now noticed that they were filled with tears. "I -- I don't," she croaked.  
  
"Wha--?" Hikari asked, choking on the piece of candy she had popped into her mouth.  
  
"I would never marry Taichi Yagami," she said more forcefully. "I would never be with him, even if he were the last boy on the planet! Never, ever in a million years would I even agree to be within fifteen feet of him!" She began to sob, hard. "I -- I --" She gulped down her tears, hugged the pillow even tighter, and shouted out, "I HATE HIM!"  
  
All three girls' eyes were wide. They could not believe their ears. And their jaws had dropped. There was pure silence for the first time of that chatter-infested night. Surely Sora hadn't just said that whole last thing? She was joking, obviously, right? But the tears in her eyes, the emotion deep in her face, could never be fake. She was telling the absolute truth. She seriously hated Taichi Yagami more than anything. But why? What had ruined their wonderful friendship, their practically storybook romance? Where had anything gone wrong, making her totally despise him? Something was very, very wrong indeed.  
  
Hikari hopped on the bed next to Sora and put her arm around her. "Oh, Sora, what's the matter?"  
  
"Your older brother," she spat out. "He's the matter. I'd die happy if I never saw him ever again in my entire life."  
  
"Surely you don't mean that!" Miyako cried in amazement.  
  
She shook her head strongly. "I meant every single word I said," she replied, whilst choking down another sob. "I hate everything associated with Taichi Yagami."  
  
"Is that why you quit soccer?" Mimi asked quietly. "That was a really ucky sport and I'm glad you did, but was that the reason?"  
  
"No," she whispered. "There WAS a time when I was very in love with Taichi. It started somewhere between soccer camp and into the Digiworld, and the crush lasted the longest time. And I realized it was much, much more than that. I just somehow knew it was love." She sighed. "And when I quit soccer, it had nothing to do with him. Because at that time, I was still very much in love with him. It devastated me...but now I'm glad I did. My mama actually was right. She always was." Sora began to cry even harder. "She really did know what was best for me, but I had to retaliate against her... I argued, fought with her, told her that she was more wrong than anything...but of course, she was right."  
  
"Right about what?" Mimi asked carefully, knowing that Sora's mother was a very touchy subject.  
  
"She was right about Taichi Yagami," she said faintly.  
  
Miyako looked into her eyes. "There's a story you want to tell," she read. "And it explains everything."  
  
She looked down, but nodded slightly. "It might take some time to tell," she began.  
  
"It's okay, we'd like to hear all of it," Hikari said, "every single detail. I would really like to know why you think so badly of my brother."  
  
"It has nothing to do with you or the rest of your family," she assured her. "Just him. That's basically all my story is about. Taichi, my mom, and me."  
  
"Then start already," Mimi urged. "A trip of a thousand miles all starts off with one small step."  
  
Sora nodded again. She wiped off her tear-stained face with a handkerchief, cleared her throat, and with a small sniffle, she began her tale. "It all started on the first days of preschool... Taichi and I met, and we instantly became friends. Then one day a few years later, I finally got permission from my mother to let him come over and play at our house. But right from the start when she met him, he was instantly disliked..."  
  
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Taichi sensed Mrs. Takenouchi's angry eyes on him, and he looked down at his shoes, a little frightened. It was the first time he had ever been to Sora's home in so many years of knowing her, and he expected it to be a lot more welcoming and homey than it really was. The atmosphere was very hostile. Why was Mrs. Takenouchi so angry with him? He had never even met her before!  
  
"He's the one," she said very bitterly, giving him another dirty look. "You hear that, Sora? He's the one. You stay away from him."  
  
"But Mama," she protested. "Taichi is my best friend--"  
  
"I don't want to hear it!" she yelled. "Stay away from that boy! I'm going back to arranging flowers, but when I get back here, I want him to be gone, you hear that? I don't want to see him in our house ever again! And I don't want you to be friends with him anymore!" And with that, she stormed off.  
  
Taichi shivered. "I think I should go now, Sora."  
  
She cowered a bit, and looked back at her mother, who was fading away. She dashed up to him and surprised him with a hug. But it was warm and cozy; it felt right, and it erased all his fears of Mrs. Takenouchi. "It's all right," she told him, beginning to cry. "Mama doesn't hate you. I think she's just angry about something else. Maybe my dad. He left us a few years ago, and she's always been mad about that. Don't worry."  
  
"I want her to like me," he said quietly. "I like you a lot, Sora."  
  
"You're my best friend too, Taichi. But maybe you shouldn't come here anymore."  
  
He nodded. "But I will see you again," he said defiantly. "I don't care what she says."  
  
"Me neither," she agreed, letting him go. "You're my best friend in the whole entire world, and she's not going to take that away from me. She CAN'T."  
  
"'Bye, Sora," he said, opening the front door. "I'll see you tomorrow."  
  
"You will," she said strongly. "I don't care what Mama says...I'll see you again..."  
  
***  
  
Sora packed up her duffle bag. She had plenty of pairs of clothes, her soccer cleats and other pads and gear, and pretty much everything she needed. She went over the contents one more time, and then checked her backpack, which had even more clothes and toiletries. "Perfect," she said. "Mama, I'm going to go now!"  
  
"That soccer camp, right?" she asked angrily. Lately, 'angry' was the only emotion she had.  
  
"Yeah, Mom. I told you about it ages ago. You even signed the permission slip."  
  
"I may have signed it then, but I don't want you going there, Sora. You are going to get hurt!"  
  
"I won't get hurt, Mom," she said, frustrated. "I've played soccer TONS of times. And I only hurt my leg that one time. Then you made me miss the game the week after. But I'll be FINE, Mom, I promise. Stop worrying! Soccer is fun!"  
  
"I don't want you playing soccer. You have to learn to like flowers, not some black and white ball that you kick into a net," she replied sternly.  
  
"You can't control my life!" she yelled. "You can't take away the things I love just because YOU don't like it! And I have to leave now, or else I won't make the bus."  
  
"You're not going to that soccer camp. I'm not going to drive you!" her mother shouted back.  
  
"I don't need you to drive! I'm getting a ride with Tai--" She instantly shut herself up when she realized what she was about to say. But she heard it already. The barrier broke and all hell broke loose.  
  
Her eyes narrowed. "TaiCHI?" Mrs. Takenouchi asked dangerously. "Sora, have you been seeing that boy behind my back?"  
  
"He's my friend!" she cried. "You can't try to take my friend away from me!"  
  
"I don't want you to hang out with him! Didn't I make that clear the first time he came here? He can never come to our house, and he can never be friends with you. Stay away from him! He's the one!"  
  
"No, Mama! You can't control me! You can't do this, you can't take away soccer, take away Taichi, try to make me lose everything I love!"  
  
That made her snap, but instead of shouting louder, her voice was a low hiss. "You LOVE Taichi?"  
  
"NO!" she cried, horrified. "I didn't mean that! He's just my best friend!"  
  
She began to calm down and stop yelling, but the fury still remained. Breathing heavily, she ordered, "I don't want you to play soccer, and I don't want you to be around Taichi. Is that understood, young lady?"  
  
"I don't care what you think!" she screamed furiously, tears coming down her cheeks. "Stop trying to control my life and take away everything that ever meant anything to me! If you were a good mother you would let me do what I love!"  
  
That hit her hard, obviously, but she didn't so much as flinch. "You will never love anything!"  
  
"It's too late, I do!" Sora was now in a rage. "I love soccer! And I DO love Taichi! And I'm going to soccer camp, and I'm going to do whatever I want, and I won't listen to you! Because I DON'T love your dumb flowers, and I don't love YOU!" She picked up her bags, ran off, and slammed the front door as hard as she could.  
  
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You knew I would ramble on and on so much that I would have to split this fic up. You knew it, right? How many knew it, seriously? Any time I have some fic about Tai and Sora with flashbacks, it's bound to be way over 20 pages before I even finish halfway. Oh, and if anyone wonders what 'the one' really means in this, you'll find out in the next part. So maybe if I get enough encouragement or a good idea for a title from you guys reading this I might actually be in a good enough mood to finish this really soon. I'm sick of begging for reviews, so please just do it without me having to ask. 


	2. Taichi's Big Mistake

Love or Hate? (Part 2)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: Hey, people! I got uppity after getting 14 reviews in one day...which really is nothing at all, especially compared to how I used to get 41+ reviews in a day in the Harry Potter section, but that's the most I've gotten lately...and I don't know, anything is reason for celebrating for me, before I have to go back to school. But for all my good cheer, that is not how this fic is. Note: this is pure soap-opera-ishness drama. So if you're looking for a happy ending to this whole story...I might write one...but this is meant to be more drama-ish than anything. I won't beg for any reviews ever again, but if a whole mess of you do review, I just might write that happy ending. *Wink* Anywho, you should REALLY read the first part to understand everything. But I understand if you don't want to, so I'll be nice and recap. (I was *really* in a good mood at this time, can you tell?)  
  
Recap: Mimi moved back to Japan, and for her first birthday since then, she decided to have a girly slumber party and invited the girl 'Destineds. They had a really typical gossip-y night, and then the subject of Mimi and Sora's crushes came up. (There's Takari, Kenyako, and Jyoumi, by the way) But is this really a Taiora? Sora declares her HATE for Tai, which is preeeetty strong, and when asked why, she begins to tell a story. Starts off the first time Tai goes to her house. Her mom is mad at him for no reason, says she never wants him in their house again, and yells at Sora to stay away from him. But she doesn't. Then it goes to Sora getting ready for soccer camp. Her mom doesn't want her playing soccer anymore and gets angry. They argue, and when Mrs. Takenouchi refuses to drive her, Sora says she's getting a ride with Tai-- And her mom gets rrrreeeeeaaaallllll pissed. She says Sora should never love anything. Sora says she already loves soccer and she does love Tai, but she doesn't love flowers or her mother, then storms off.  
  
P.S. Oh yeah, Sora's mom also calls Taichi 'the one'...but you never knew out what that meant. I assure you, it does not mean the Backstreet Boys' song, Thomas Anderson Neo from the Matrix, or *anything* dealing with sex. You find out in this part. Also in this part, there's a point which is my way of expressing my feelings towards my brother, but I'm not really angry. I kind of exaggerated it, but hey, this is fiction here. It just shows the influence big brothers or guy best friends have upon us girls. And if Sora's mom is one of your favorite characters (I don't know why she would be, I'm just saying), Tai insults her a lot in this. And if Tai is your favorite character (like me), he's a major jerk. If Sora is your favorite character...well, she's in this too, and cries some more. And if Matt if your favorite character, he does come into this story.  
  
Disclaimer: Man, my hands are tired from typing that whole thing, so you better be grateful if you didn't read the first part. I'll keep this disclaimer relatively short. Digimon is not mine. See?  
  
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Sora walked down the hallways of the high school, heading for her locker. She heard Taichi's voice. Oh, that was right, she had to talk to him about their science project together. She hugged her books to her chest and hurried along down the corridor. Then she turned, but she heard a bit of conversation. It was Taichi's voice, obviously, and also, Yamato's. She didn't want to be rude and eavesdrop, but something had caught her attention, and she was interested.  
  
"Are you finally going to ask her out today, Taichi?" Yamato asked.  
  
*Who's he going to ask out?* Sora wondered. *Does Taichi love someone? Who does he love? Of course it can't be me... My love is obviously unrequited. Taichi probably loves some dense, but beautiful cheerleader girl. I'd never stand a chance.*  
  
"I hope so... Every single time I chicken out! I've tried so many times...unsuccessfully. But I will ask her today, I swear. I loved her for so long... But what if she doesn't feel the same?"  
  
"You do this every time!" Yamato said with a sigh. "We've gone over this time and time again, she HAS to love you back. For years you've known each other, right? Been best friends?"  
  
*It can't be me they're talking about,* she thought, breathing heavily. *He'd never go for someone like me. I'm too much of a tomboy. The only girlish part of me is this skirt I'm forced to wear as uniform, and my tennis outfit. There's also the flower arranging part... So I'm not a total tomboy. But he can't love me. He's probably talking about some other girl best friend. Mimi, maybe? No, she's in New York...and he really doesn't like her. Who are they talking about?* She decided to listen more.  
  
"I'm just...scared, Yamato."  
  
"Aw, stop it, you wuss. There's nothing to asking a girl out. Especially when they're bound to return your love. There's no way she can't love you! Friends always fall for each other at one point or another, right?"  
  
"True, but what if she's over me?"  
  
"Stop, Taichi. Just shut up. Gather your COURAGE and ask her out. She'll LOVE you back."  
  
"Yamato, you're a dork," Taichi said exasperatedly.  
  
"Courage? Love? Come on, that's great comedy!" he protested.  
  
Sora's eyes went wide. Was she hearing properly? Or was she just making herself hear things? *Courage? As in crests? Like Taichi's? And love? As in...me? No, this can't be, there must be some mistake!*  
  
"You suck at jokes, all right? Give it up, it ruins your whole cool guy persona."  
  
His voice was panicked. "Really? Maybe I should use more hair gel again..."  
  
"Shut up. I'm freaking out here. My hands are actually shaking. I can't ask her out. As my best friend, you're supposed to reassure me."  
  
"I've done everything I can!" he cried. "It's all up to you now. Just do it, okay? Promise me you'll ask her out."  
  
"Okay...but I just love her so much, you know? What if she says no? Our friendship will be ruined forever. And I don't want that to happen. Because I love Sora more than anything in the world."  
  
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All the girls squealed, and Sora covered her ears with her hands.  
  
"Taichi loved you?" Miyako asked elatedly.  
  
"So did he ask you out?" Mimi asked. "Aw, Sora, did you say no?"  
  
"Of course not," she said firmly. "He never asked me out."  
  
"And you're sure he said SORA?" Miyako asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure," she said impatiently. "I guess he chickened out again. So typical of him. He can jump into a stupid situation without thinking and come off brave, but when there's some sort of plan to it that requires time to think it over and true bravery, he can't do it. Crest of courage, my a--"  
  
"Sora!" Hikari exclaimed. "You fail to realize that I am right here and you're speaking badly about my brother."  
  
She sighed. "I'm sorry, Hikari, it's just -- well, I'll just continue on with my story."  
  
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"I swear to god, I'll do it today," Taichi whispered to himself. "There she is -- she's right there--"  
  
Taichi was standing right outside the entrance to the tennis courts. Sora had just finished practice against Gwen, beating her, but for some reason not playing her best, and now she was finished. She slowly packed away her racket and all her other things, wiped the sweat off her forehead, and put her reddish brown hair into a ponytail.  
  
"Bye, everyone!" she called, a little unenthusiastically. "See you next week." Then she slung her duffel bag over her shoulder and walked out the door. But she accidentally bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm so sorry -- Taichi!" she cried out in surprise and nearly fell over.  
  
Luckily, he caught her. "Oh -- heh -- uhm, hey, Sora." He noticed that a blush was also on her face.  
  
"What -- what are you doing here?" she asked shyly, steadying herself and pulling down her skirt.  
  
"I kind of -- eh -- I kind of wanted to talk to you," he answered.  
  
"Oh, sure," she agreed. "What about?"  
  
"Well, I sorta have a whole speech planned out," he replied, looking at the palm of his hand. "Er, Sora, ever since I met you, I kind of felt kinda--"  
  
"Taichi," she said, laughing. She took his wrist and put his hand down. Still holding it, she replied, "Don't say these cheese ball lines that Yamato obviously wrote for you. Speak from your heart, say what you really think."  
  
He gulped like a fish out of water. "You -- you know?"  
  
Sora's cheeks went pink again. "Well, a few weeks ago, I heard you talking to Yamato before school... And I'm really sorry, but I couldn't help eavesdropping, and--"  
  
"So you already know what I'm going to say," he said. She nodded, embarrassed. "Well then, what's your answer?"  
  
Her gaze went down to the ground; she noticed how their hands were still holding, and let go, then took a step back. "Um, Taichi, I don't know what to say... I've always loved you...but this is really a bad time..."  
  
"Why?" he asked suddenly. "Did someone ask you first? Oh man, I'm an idiot! I've waited for so long, but I've been too shy to ask you out... I AM a wuss..." he groaned.  
  
"You're not a wuss," she told him softly. "However, if you did ask sooner, I would have said yes... But the case is not that I have a boyfriend. It's something totally different."  
  
"It's your mom, isn't it?" he asked, slightly suspicious, but she failed to notice.  
  
Her head sank even lower down. "How did you know?" she asked softly.  
  
"I just knew it," he said quietly, but as he kept on talking, his voice got louder, and his tone angrier. "I knew it would be because of your mom. She's trying to control you again. She forbid you to even be friends with me, because I'm 'the one,' whatever the hell that means. Now you're going to say no to me just because she doesn't want you to be around me? It's not what she thinks that matters, it's what you think. And you've never let her bossiness stop you from doing what you loved before."  
  
"Bossiness?" she said in surprise, her eyes widening. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Your mom was always a control freak, Sora. She told you what you could and couldn't do, and frankly, I think that list of 'couldn't dos' was at least fifty times longer than the things she ever let you do, which included arranging flowers and playing tennis. She's trying to change you into a whole different person, more like herself, and she's trying to make you like things that'll seem more girly. Like soccer! She already stole that away from you!"  
  
"Because I broke my leg!" she cried. "She was looking out for my safety, you know that!"  
  
"Well if being safe means you can't do ANYTHING, I'd choose the risk of getting hurt over safety any day!"  
  
"I'm not you!" she yelled. "And I don't have to be around you if you don't want to--"  
  
"If YOU don't want to? It's your mom who's doing this! She's brainwashed you into thinking I'm the worst person on the planet! And you're starting to believe every single word she says. Look what's happening to our friendship because of her! I always thought we could just ignore her, not listen--"  
  
"Defy her?" she interrupted angrily. "My mother knew what was best for me, and she did everything she could to make sure I made the right choice--"  
  
"What was best for you? Sora, what you want is what's best for you. You decide how you live life, not her! She was trying to live her life through you!"  
  
"She was making sure that I didn't make the same mistakes she did!" Sora argued.  
  
Taichi was amazed. "Why are you sticking up for her? You were the one who always said she was trying to make herself feel better of her messed up life by making you do all the things she didn't. You're the one who said she set way too many rules and tried to take away everything you loved and replace it!"  
  
"Well maybe she was right for doing so!" she shouted. "Because I always seemed to love all the wrong things!"  
  
"Wrong things? Soccer is not wrong! Her trying to force you into liking other things just because SHE wants it is wrong!"  
  
"The things I loved WERE wrong! They made me get hurt! Soccer gave me injuries, a broken heart when we lost a game--"  
  
"Soccer was fun!" he yelled. "It's just a freaking sport! It's just a game that you play, and there's always the risk of getting hurt in any sport! What if the stupid tennis ball hit you in the face and bashed it in? Getting hurt is always a factor in whatever the hell you choose to do."  
  
"Well, some things have a higher percentage of you getting injured. Soccer gets you more hurt than tennis. And one thing can hurt me the most, guaranteed."  
  
"Oh yeah?" he asked menacingly. "What's that, Sora? Huh? Tell me."  
  
"You," she whispered. Then she got more confident and her voice was stronger. "You're the one. The one who is going to make me fall in love with you, so much that I can't take it, and just then, you'll hurt me like no one else can. My mom knew that right from the start. We were such good friends, and I was so attached to you, and when I loved you so much and thought you did too, you would hurt me. Just like my dad hurt my mother--"  
  
"I'm not your dad!" he yelled. "See, look, she's trying to make your life seem like hers! But I would never hurt you!"  
  
"You're hurting me right now!" she contradicted. "Look at you, criticizing how my mother brought me up, just because you have the perfect family, perfect parents, perfect sister, perfect friends, perfect life, and perfect everything! Well, I'm not perfect and just because that doesn't live up to your standards doesn't mean you can go around saying how wrong my family is!"  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?!" he raged. "Geez, Sora, what is with you? I just wanted to ask you out because I'm so in love with you that I can't even think straight when I'm around you!"  
  
"That's right, you really aren't thinking straight. So stop saying how bad of a mother my mom was!"  
  
He was so furious and not thinking clearly, that the tense of that last comment didn't affect him. "I love you, Sora, why does that make me a bad person?! Your mother totally convinced you that love is the worst thing in the world. Yet you were always caring and compassionate, and you got the crest of love. What ever happened to that Sora? Your mother changed you from the girl that you were--"  
  
"No, YOU changed me!" she shouted. "Do you think that before I met you, that I ever gave a damn about Donkey Madness and Nintendo and RPGs and video games? Do you think I even knew how to use anything electronic and stop the VCR from flashing 12:00? Do you think I would know how to punch a perfect right hook or uppercut and give a boy a bloody nose or a black eye? Would I really read comic books and video game and sports magazines instead of fashion magazines? Do you really believe that I could even kick a soccer ball or play without using my hands? You think I just became interested in all kinds of sports all by myself? Without you, would I know what the difference was between a foul in baseball or basketball? If I had just played with other girls like myself, would I know anything about any of those things? No, instead of having tea parties with my stuffed animals and playing with Barbies and dressing up in my mom's clothes, I was trying to beat the last boss in Final Fantasy and playing with action figures and G.I. Joes and dressing up in soccer jerseys. If anyone influenced me and changed me, it's you! You made me change from a girl to a total tomboy!"  
  
"You agreed to all those things! And you never were a 'real girl' in the first place! When I first met you, you were the one with your nose buried in a comic book, asking me if I knew what an X-Man was! You're the one who used to stupidly play around with acid and fire!" Sora flinched, but he didn't understand why. "Did you forget all that? Or did your mom pin the blame of your tomboyishness on me? Your mom said I was the one who would break your heart? What have I done so far to make you really cry? YOUR MOM is the one who always made you so angry or sad! And I was the one who would cheer you up afterwards!"  
  
"NO! My mom never hurt me! She's the one who protected me--"  
  
Taichi scoffed. "That isn't what happened. If you're trying to lie about the past just to make me look like the bad guy here, then I give up. If you really didn't want to go out with me, a simple 'no' would have worked. But no, you had to make me bring in how your mother made you afraid of ever loving anyone, and how your mother always stopped you from doing what you wanted. And then when I start repeating the exact same things you said about your mom, you get mad at me for being mean to her! It's your fault! And it's mostly all her fault! Don't blame me for any of this!"  
  
"You're wrong!" Tears were pouring down her face. "It's not my mom's fault, she was always right about everything..."  
  
"Look. See, she did brainwash you. I don't know what's the matter with you, Sora, but I know that you're definitely not the girl that I fell in love with."  
  
"I am who I am right now!"  
  
"Yeah," he agreed with a grimace, "and that person who you are is your mother."  
  
"What's wrong with my mother?" She wiped her face with her sleeves and then crossed her arms. "Please, tell me every single little detail about what was wrong with my mother." And again, Taichi failed to realize how she had said 'was' instead of 'is.'  
  
"Do you really want to hear what I think about your mother, Sora? The truth?" She nodded fiercely. "Okay, here it is: your mother is way too much of a control freak. And she thinks you're just some sort of puppet. She decides your life for you; she's the one living it, not you. And she keeps comparing your life to hers, even if it's entirely different. She's afraid of love, and she's taught you to fear it too. She says that I'm the one, just like your father, who would make you feel completely miserable and break your heart. She never bothered to mention all the good times they had together. Not every relationship works out, but you can't be sure it won't until you try. Your mother never gave you a chance to learn for yourself about anything, she just instantly decided that it was wrong. And she always had the right answers and things to do. She was convinced she was right, and then she could always force you to do it and give up whatever you really liked. Then she says that she's only looking out for what's the best for you, instead of seeing how what you love can be the best thing for you. She makes you think every single person is someone you should hate or fear, because they're going to hurt you. When in actuality, she's hurt you more than any other person ever has. Other people can be bad, but it's not her to choice to decide if they are or aren't. Because you can never know until you see how they really are. And since you were with your mom so much, you probably know what SHE really is."  
  
"Oh yeah? What's that?" she asked furiously, the tears flooding.  
  
"A terrible and downright poor excuse for a mother," he spat out.  
  
Sora felt her non-stop hot tears streaming down her face. "I can't believe you just said all of that," she whispered.  
  
His jaw was set. "It's the truth."  
  
"I know my mother never liked you much, but you have no excuse to--" she started.  
  
"She had no excuse to hate me from the start! Stop trying to defend her when she was obviously wrong!" he yelled impatiently.  
  
"She was always right! She said that you would hurt me, you said you would never do that -- but look what you just did! You had to hurt me by insulting my mother! That is the most insensitive thing--"  
  
"You brought all of this on!" he disagreed. "If you had just given me a simple answer to my question, a yes or a no, it wouldn't have had to go this far. Neither of us would have gotten this fired"--she cringed--"up over some little thing that you talk about all the time. Stop trying to do what your mother did and blame everyone else for your and her mistakes!"  
  
"I don't want to hear this anymore! I'm sick and tired of hearing this fight. I'm tired of hearing you! I'm tired of seeing you, being around you, being hurt by you. Just leave me alone! I don't want to see you ever again!" With a sob, she put her face in her hands and ran off.  
  
"Why are you doing this?" he shouted after her, his hands cupped around his mouth. "Why are you getting so touchy about your mother when you've known these things about her and said it yourself all along?!" Little did he know, he would get his answer soon later.  
  
***  
  
Yamato walked down the street, carrying his bass case. He had just finished a long and tiring rehearsal with his band. On his way home, he had to pass by the tennis courts, and while he was walking by, he noticed a big mop of brown hair, that obviously belonged to his best friend Taichi. So he walked over, wondering what he was doing there so late, when Sora's practice would have ended hours ago. As he got nearer, he heard sniffles and sobs. It was unusual to see Taichi crying, but when he did, he had a good reason to. Yamato wondered what that reason was.  
  
"Taichi?" he asked cautiously, sitting down next to him on the steps and setting his case down.  
  
With a sniffle, Taichi looked up, and his chocolate brown eyes met a pair of bright azure. "What?"  
  
"What are you doing here? And crying, I might add?" he asked curiously. "I take it things didn't go well with Sora?"  
  
"Worse than you'd think. She left me saying that she didn't want to ever see me again," he explained weakly.  
  
His eyes went a little wider. "Why?"  
  
Taichi shrugged. "I just said some things about her mom and she snapped--"  
  
"What kind of things?" Yamato cut in quickly.  
  
"I dunno, that her mom made her afraid of loving and trusting people, and that her mom was trying to live her life through her..."  
  
"Holy crap, how could you say that?" he asked, shocked.  
  
"Do you know something I don't?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, which was rather difficult with tears pouring out of his eyes.  
  
"Don't tell me you didn't hear!" Yamato exclaimed.  
  
"Hear what?"  
  
"Sora's mom died this morning," he said solemnly.  
  
"Oh shit!" Taichi yelled, pounding his fist against the cement steps, which really hurt. But nothing hurt him worse than how he realized he had hurt Sora. "What have I done?! How -- how -- how did she die?"  
  
"A fire," Yamato said, at the same time as Taichi, who just realized it. He remembered how Sora twitched whenever he said the word 'fire,' and how she always spoke in past tense about her mother earlier that day.  
  
"Dammit, Yamato, I'm the most insensitive jerk ever! No wonder Sora hates me!" He buried his head in his hands. "Ugh, why did I say all those mean things to her about her mother?!"  
  
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself and feel sorry for how Sora feels after all that! Hurry up and apologize to her already!" he yelled, pushing him. Taichi stumbled off the steps and nearly slammed his face into the concrete. His bottom lip cut and started bleeding, but that was the least of his worries. "Go, go!" Yamato urged.  
  
"I'll just tell her I had no idea about her mother," he panted to himself, running as fast as he possibly could, his legs all awkward and lopsided. He was running very strangely, but it was making him a lot faster of a runner than he had ever been. And that's all he cared about, getting there fast, not having to look like some graceful, Olympic runner. He was running out of air and energy fast, but he kept at it. After all, it was crucial that he apologize soon. "Sora, I'm sorry!"  
  
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Welps, there you go. That whole lame fight was why Sora hated Taichi. *Imitation of Shawn Wayans from "Scary Movie," which is the coolest movie in the world (j/k)* But wait! There's more! *Spit flies out* This fic is not over yet, believe you me. More things do happen to make her so fully hate him. And I'm not gonna beg for reviews...so I'll go now and finish part 3 ASAP! Later! 


	3. Yamato in the Middle

Love or Hate? (Part 3)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: As you might know, I gave up on this fic in December. But I liked this fic too much to give it up completely. Also thanks to ~*Liz*~, Artisan of the Written Word, and anyone else for encouraging me to finish it. I knew I'd come back to it someday. I tried finishing it a bunch of times, but this time I think I'll actually do it. The main reason I stopped writing this fic was... Well if you already know, good for you. If you care, ask. I'm not in the mood for more explanations than I already owe.  
  
Anyway, I had a whole bunch of ideas for this 3rd part, but they either didn't fit, got shot down, or they just plain sucked or I couldn't write it. Anyway, I trashed all my former ideas and tried to come up with a new one. I don't know if it will make too much sense, but I'm just aiming to see if I can't wrap up everything by the 4th or 5th chapter. Hopefully this part will fit into why Sora hates Tai, be different from the things I've been writing lately, and just be somewhat good. High hopes? You bet. Do I think I can achieve that? Probably not. But I'll try.  
  
Disclaimer: Digimon was never, will never, and can never be mine.  
  
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*By the way, if you forgot what happened or never read this fic, go back to parts 1 and 2 and read those first*  
  
"I never knew Taichi did that!" Hikari exclaimed, horrified. "I mean, he went through this awful period when he was so depressed he never ate, and he barely even talked to us. He just stayed alone in his room, occasionally muttering to himself, 'I'm so sorry, Sora, I'm so sorry,' and sometimes late at night, I could even hear him crying."  
  
"Taichi crying?" Sora asked in amazement. "Of all the years I've known him, I've never seen him actually cry -- well except about Agumon, but I mean, I've never seen him sobbing and crying and all. It doesn't fit."  
  
"Remember that time in the Digiworld, the first time," Mimi began, "when you got kidnapped by Datamon--"  
  
"Of course I remember!" she burst out. "He only kept me captive and tried to clone me!"  
  
"Yeah, that's how Taichi felt about it too," she said quietly. "And he knew it was all his fault because he could have saved you, but he was too afraid to go through the electric wall. Later at camp, he was crying; really, really crying, and he didn't care who saw him. He was crying because he couldn't save you, and he was very sorry about it. He desperately wanted to save you, so don't think Taichi just left you there."  
  
"I never thought that," Sora said in a soft voice, drawing her knees to her chest and hugging them tightly. "But I didn't think he cared *that* much."  
  
"You just never knew how much he loved you," Hikari told her.  
  
"But-- but--" she sputtered hopelessly.  
  
Miyako shook her head. "There are no 'buts' about it. Sora, I know Taichi really hurt your feelings with those remarks, but he didn't know your mother was dead. If he had, he never would have said those harsh things about her. He never would have even tried asking you out or anything; he would probably comfort you and try to make you feel better. You know that."  
  
"I didn't at the time--"  
  
"And then did you ever think how Taichi felt after that?" Mimi pressed. "He felt terrible enough once he found out that he had completely put down your mother when she had just died, and that would be enough to make anyone so depressed they wouldn't eat. And Taichi wasn't eating; can you believe that? That pig--" She started to giggle, and then cleared her throat and went on seriously. "The real reason he felt bad was because he knew how much he hurt you. Considering he was in love with you, that would hurt a lot to him. And then you had already broken his heart by refusing to date him without any reasonable explanation."  
  
Sora's jaw dropped. "No, but I--"  
  
"Just continue with the story," Hikari instructed, and Sora nodded, knowing that now she wouldn't be winning their sympathy about the whole situation.  
  
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"Hey, Sora... This is Taichi...again. I just wanted to say, in case you erased the other messages, that I can't apologize enough. I am so, so, so, so, so, so, SO sorry. I never knew that your mom was -- decease -- erm, passed aw -- dea -- what she is. I really hope we can be friends again...or something. And I was lying, I do still love you. ...Errr...uhm, bye." BEEP!  
  
Sora sighed, frustrated, and deleted the seventeenth message that Taichi had left. Then she turned around and headed for her bedroom.  
  
When the phone rang again.  
  
"Taichi, will you just give up, for crying out loud!" she cried out.  
  
A deep, businessman sounding voice said, "Hello... I'm calling for a Ms. Takenouchi..."  
  
Well, it in no way resembled Taichi's, but she noted it sounded suspiciously like Yamato with a poorly masked voice. After thinking it over for a while, she dashed to the phone anyway and picked it up. "Hello?"  
  
"Sora! Thank god you finally answer--" It was now Taichi's voice.  
  
CLICK.  
  
*Give up already!* she thought. *What do I have to do to stop him from--* She got an idea and unplugged all the phones in her house. "Peace and quiet," she said, flumping onto the couch. And then she fell into a deep sleep.  
  
***  
  
Taichi sighed and placed the receiver down slowly. "There goes my fifteenth unsuccessful attempt. Do you think she hates me now, Yamato?"  
  
The blonde boy placed his bass down. "I can't say, Taichi. You did a pretty horrible thing. But I'm sure she'll forgive you eventually. Come on, this is Sora we're talking about. She's forgiven you for tons of things. Right? You two can fight like cats and dogs sometimes, then you always end up all lovey dovey like birds and bees."  
  
"We fought about stupid things," he argued. "Oh, I gave her some hairclips for her birthday and she thought I hated her hat and her hair. So I threw up in her lucky hat before. We've always argued about my immaturity and lack of thinking before acting. I've always called her too much of a worrywart. This is different, Yamato! I totally said every single bad thing there is to say about her mother, when she's dead!"  
  
"Sora will forgive you," he assured him. "Come on, you've been a total jerk tons of times, and she forgave you--"  
  
"Her mom is not a fucking lucky hat!" Taichi yelled impatiently. He slammed his fist down on something wrapped in tinfoil, placed on the counter. Which was harder than hitting the counter itself. He cursed loudly. "What was that?!" he asked, cradling his hurt hand in his other.  
  
"Oh, I think it's one of the fruitcakes your mom sent over last Christmas..." Yamato said sheepishly. "Did you guys even eat that stuff? Takeru lost a tooth from trying to bite into it."  
  
"Gee, thanks," he said sarcastically. "Go and insult my mom's cooking when I'm feeling bad."  
  
He shrugged again. "His tooth was loose, and you know yourself that your mother is a horrible cook. But anyway, how do you think Sora feels? You didn't insult her mom's cooking. You insulted her dead mom. Very, very harshly. And she was already bummed about the death. Plus, you're her best friend in the whole world, right? So multiply your feelings times some odd thousand...you've got Sora's feelings."  
  
"God, no wonder she hates me," he realized, falling onto the couch. "And I can't do anything about it. Not a single, fucking thing!"  
  
"Hey, just relax. Maybe if you stop tensing about it, you'll come up with a solution. You're trying too hard, just loosen up," he advised him.  
  
"How am I supposed to relax right now?" Taichi demanded.  
  
"Maybe a song will cheer you up," he suggested.  
  
Yamato started strumming a mellow little tune for a few measures. "This one is for you, Taichi Yagami." He played on longer, then after a while, he began to improvise lyrics. "I know a girl... The most beautiful, nice one in the world... And I love her... And she loves me." Then he started playing a few more chords. "I am a guy... The most insensitive asshole, I can't lie... And I acted like a jerk, our relationship won't work, and now she hates me..."  
  
"Cut it out!" Taichi grabbed the bass from the musician's hands. It nearly fell on the floor, but Yamato caught it.  
  
"What are you trying to do, you jerk?"  
  
"ME?! You and your dumb song--!"  
  
The front door opened. "Yamato, you there?" Mr. Ishida stepped into the apartment, with his usual tired swagger. He took off his jacket and was holding it with one hand behind his back. Then he tossed it on his chair at the dining table and slumped down. He picked up his Sonic CD player and was about to listen to the soothing sound of buffaloes migrating, when Yamato spoke up.  
  
"You've had your heart broken, right, Dad?"  
  
He placed the CD player down, pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his coat pocket, lit it, and then took a puff. "Yamato, do you really want to hear this whole story about your mother again?"  
  
He shook his head vigorously. "No, of course not. That's the longest and most boring story possible. Taichi and I just kind of wanted your advice... You know, your thoughts on heartbreak."  
  
He took another puff and thought for a while. "It sucks," he said finally. "And it doesn't go away for a long, long time."  
  
"Yeah, I figured that," Taichi said glumly, crossing his arms.  
  
"You had your heart broken, kid?" he asked Taichi.  
  
"Yep," he muttered. "And if was all my stupid fault."  
  
Mr. Ishida laughed. "It's always our faults. We're men, what do you expect? Everything is our fault. We're insensitive, lazy slobs."  
  
"And total jerks," Taichi agreed.  
  
(Dude, I'm not sexist or anything, okay?)  
  
"That reminds me of a song," Yamato began, picking up his instrument. He began to play softly. "This is for you, Taichi Yagami...and you too, Dad. And it goes a little something like this--"  
  
"Don't you dare." Taichi whacked the bass out of his hands, hard; and this time, it flew across the room, and then successfully landed and cracked on the ground.  
  
Mr. Ishida choked on his cigarette. Oh boy, that kid had made a HUGE mistake.   
  
Yamato's jaw dropped. His initial reaction was shock. Then his eyes narrowed. Raw anger...it was definitely building... "Taichi, you're a dead man!" He jumped up to his feet and placed his hands around Taichi's neck to strangle him. "I'm going to make your life miserable--"  
  
Taichi didn't even try to run, he just hung his head and gave. In a depressed voice, he replied, "It already is."  
  
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"Wait just one second!" Hikari cut in.  
  
Mimi and Miyako groaned, and Sora sighed at the interruption. "You better have a good reason," Mimi whined. "I wanted to hear what Yamato did to Taichi!"  
  
"I DO have a good reason. Sora, how do you know things from Yamato and Taichi's points of view if you never wanted to see Taichi again?"  
  
"Good point!" the other two realized.  
  
"Oh, that," she remembered. "Well, I never said I wouldn't talk to Yamato ever again..."  
  
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An hour or so had passed, and Yamato and Taichi finally stopped fighting and rolling around on the ground strangling and trying to kill each other. They sat down, panting, and struggling to regain their breath.  
  
"Hey, I'm really sorry about your bass," Taichi said breathlessly. "I never meant to break it."  
  
Yamato glanced over his shoulder at his bass, which had a huge crack down it. His expression was obviously sad, but he just said, "It can be fixed. And though you think your situation can't, you've got to at least try. Don't just give up on Sora and your relationship. It hasn't been too long, and I think you two can still have a chance."  
  
"How do I apologize for what I did?" he asked, resting his chin on his fists.  
  
"I don't think you can yet."  
  
Taichi's head swiveled to face the other boy's. "Then I am screwed! If I can't apologize, what can I do?"  
  
"Hmmm..." Yamato thought about that for a while. "How about I go talk to her?" he suggested. "I'll see how Sora's feeling about the whole thing, try to calm her down, convince her that you're not a total ogre, and maybe she'll forgive you."  
  
His eyes lit up. "Would you really?"  
  
"Sure, I'm always willing to help a friend in need," he replied.  
  
Taichi looked down at the ground. "Hey, while you were punching me in the face, I'm sorry I said you were a terrible friend too, and shouldn't have deserved the crest of friendship."  
  
"It's okay. I shouldn't have called you a bad friend in the first place."  
  
"But I am," he admitted. "If I were any decent friend, I wouldn't have said what I did to Sora."  
  
"You didn't know about her mom. I know that's still no excuse, but don't do this to yourself; all this self-pity. If it were the other way around -- if I had done this to Sora, you'd tell me not to lose any sleep over it. Come on, you're only human. And all humans make mistakes. It doesn't make you a terrible person, all right?" Yamato told him. "You're not a bad friend either. I'll tell Sora all of this, and she's got to understand."  
  
"What if she doesn't?"  
  
He paused for a very long time, wondering what he could say that wouldn't further discourage Taichi. "We can't afford to think about that right now."  
  
***  
  
The doorbell rang one more time. Obviously, this person wasn't going to give up. But she had this feeling, this gut feeling, that it wasn't Taichi. Why not? Finally, she got up off the couch and walked to the front door. Peeking out the peephole, she realized her intuition had been right. Nope, Taichi wasn't at the door.  
  
It was Yamato. He stood there waiting, his hands in his pockets, not budging an inch. Was he determined to talk to her as much as Taichi was? And then she realized it was probably about Taichi. Or he could've been there simply to comfort her. Once Sora had found out her mother had died, Yamato was the first person there to comfort her. And of that, she was grateful. So with slightly trembling fingers, she slid the latch off the door, unlocked it, and then slowly turned the knob.  
  
Yamato let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Sora."  
  
"For what?" she asked hesitantly.  
  
"For giving me a chance."  
  
"I -- I don't understand," she said, a puzzled expression on her face. "Why don't you come inside, and we'll talk about it."  
  
He shook his head. "Let's go for a walk. You need to be outside and get some fresh air. It's always good for you after things like this happen."  
  
She hesitated.  
  
"Come on, let's go. Trust me, you can't stay cooped up in your house forever. It's just a little stroll," he told her. "Can't do any harm."  
  
Finally she nodded, stepped outside, and locked her door. They began to walk down the corridor and to the elevator. They were silent until they finally exited the apartment building.  
  
"So why did you come here?" she asked him curiously.  
  
"I wanted to check up on you," he explained. "See if you're feeling all right yet."  
  
"You already know what happened with Taichi and I, right?" she asked feebly, carefully avoiding his gaze. He nodded, and then reached for her hand. Sora looked at him, confused, but let him take it. "So if you know what he did...how do you think I'm supposed to feel all right?"  
  
He shrugged. "I figured you wouldn't. I know what he did really, really hurt you...but I came here to tell you that you should give him a chance."  
  
Her eyes narrowed. "Why should I? After what he did?"  
  
"Because--" He gulped and tried to remember what he had told Taichi earlier. "Because he's only human, and all humans make mistakes."  
  
"I'm sure most humans are smart enough not to make mistakes that completely dumb and insensitive. Of course, that's what Taichi is -- dumb and insensitive," she said coldly.  
  
It was then that Yamato realized convincing Sora to forgive Taichi would be a whole lot harder than he expected. "If that was true, why would he be feeling so terrible about what he did to you? If he were really that insensitive, he wouldn't give a damn about how you feel. But he does care. Maybe more than he should. But how can you blame the guy? He's still in love with you, you know."  
  
"Was I supposed to lie and agree to date him, when I had more important things -- like, say, my mother being dead -- to worry about? Should I just pretend to love him so he isn't hurt, and I'm hurt more?"  
  
"You don't have to pretend to love him," he said, reading her mind. "I know that you've loved Taichi just as long -- maybe even longer -- than he's loved you. When you love someone that much, it doesn't just go away because of one incident."  
  
"But it can," she disagreed, looking entirely downhearted. "Every time he did something stupid, every time we argued and fought, every time something between us wasn't perfect -- I wondered if I really should be in love with him, or if I was just being foolish and wishing for something that could never work."  
  
"It can't ever be perfect," Yamato told her. "Nothing is perfect. Taichi sure isn't. And believe it or not -- no offense or anything -- but neither are you. I mean, I'm not, no one is. Perfection is just an empty word. But you and Taichi could be so close to it that it's amazing you're not together yet."  
  
"I'm guessing you think this is my fault?" she asked suspiciously.  
  
"No, not that at all!" He looked at her, and finally caught her watery cinnamon eyes. He took both of her hands and turned to face her, still staring deeply into her eyes. "It's not you fault. It's not Taichi's either. You can't just place the blame fully on one person. Anyone can take credit for it, but that's never entirely true. It takes two to argue."  
  
"So you are saying some of it is my fault."  
  
"Isn't it, though?" he asked. "Hell, we could just say all of this is my fault. It's just about as true as saying all of this weight belongs on Taichi's shoulders. Come on, Sora, what do you say? At least give him a chance... Hear him out and try to see things from his perspective?"  
  
Sora was reluctant to say anything. Her eyes kept darting around, like there was someone nearby who could just give her all the right answers. After thinking it over for so incredibly long, she looked down at the ground. "Okay," she mumbled.  
  
"Thank you!" Yamato exclaimed, loosening his grip on her wrists. Then he gave her a hug. "Thank you, Sora, for making the right choice."  
  
"I know that my mother never gave Taichi a chance," she whispered, "so I'm only trying to be fair to him by being more open."  
  
"That was a good decision," he told her, burying his face in her hair. Why did it feel so right to have Sora in his arms? Sure, he had done what he set out to do; get Sora to give Taichi a chance... So why did he feel himself getting drawn more and more to Sora instead?  
  
"What would I do without you, Yamato?" she asked him, resting her head on his shoulder. He didn't reply, still too wrapped up in his thoughts. "Why didn't..." She looked up at him, finally making eye contact for the first time. Her voice dropped to a low whisper. "Why didn't I fall in love with you in the first place?"  
  
Yamato froze. "What?"  
  
"You're so much better for me," she said. "You've always been there for me when I needed help--"  
  
"That was Taichi," he protested. "You even said he was knight in shining armor--!"  
  
"No," she said, placing her finger to his lips. "It's you."  
  
"You're getting it all wrong, Sora," he said frantically. "This trauma has gotten you all confused..."  
  
"But I've never seen it all so clearly," she said, her eyes misty. "Don't you see? This whole time I was living a lie, thinking I loved Taichi. It was because my mother told me not to ever love anyone or anything. So I naturally fell for the boy closest to me, Taichi... But I never really loved him..." She stood on her tiptoes, bringing her face closer to his. "I love you..."  
  
And without knowing what he was doing, Yamato felt like a magnet was drawing him closer to her too. What he was doing was wrong, he was supposed to be helping Taichi, not himself. Why wasn't that enough for him? *This is wrong, this is wrong* he kept telling himself. Then he finally gave into it. *But it feels so right...* He closed his eyes and then closed the gap between his and Sora's lips.  
  
When they drew apart, Sora had a wide smile on her face. But Yamato's jaw dropped. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was -- Taichi.  
  
+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
I'm sure you all expected that. I was trying to keep you guys guessing with what would happen in this story, but it just became to obvious I would do this. It doesn't end Sorato, I promise, this is all part of the plot. It does fit in with the Sora hating Tai thing...just wait until the next part! (Assuming I finish it...) For now, I'll need your encouragement or else I might just give up again... 


	4. Miyako Tells Her Tale

Love or Hate? (Part 4)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: I gave up on this fic again in like March, but once again, I felt like coming back to it. If I could only just finish this part, there'll probably be one more and then I'll finally be finished with this series. I'm so sorry there's been such a huge gap between each part. I mean, December to March, March to May... And it's not like I didn't have the idea either.  
  
Thanks so much, Taigurl, for that great plot! Sorry I hadn't finished it much sooner. Well, this may not have come out the way you imagined, but I tried, and then I added a few ideas of my own.  
  
In case you guys forgot what happened in the story and you don't want to read the three parts over again, or you haven't and just don't want to read them at all, there's a big recap at the beginning here to refresh your memory. Anyway, here's part 4!  
  
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All three girls stared at Sora in bewilderment, with their eyes so wide they'd probably pop out, and their jaws nearly unhinged. For a long time, they found it hard to even speak.  
  
"How -- how --" Mimi stammered. "How could you do that, Sora?"  
  
"Yeah, you had us thinking you were purely the victim in this story, but look at you! First you don't even give Taichi a chance to apologize, and then when you decide to open up, you start smooching with Yamato!" Miyako cried incredulously. "And in front of Taichi, too! You said you hate Taichi... Well, no offense, but Taichi should probably hate you equally as much!"  
  
"None taken," Sora said firmly, "because trust me, he did."  
  
+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^  
  
The hours, days, and weeks seemed to have flown by, and yet just dragged on at the same time, until months had passed since Mrs. Takenouchi died, since Sora first got mad at Taichi, since Yamato and Sora kissed, and since pretty much everything in Taichi's, Yamato's, and Sora's lives had gone wrong.  
  
Sora strolled down the sidewalk, her hands in her pockets, but she wasn't focused on where she was going; just mindlessly drifting like a dandelion puff in the wind. As usual, there were just too many things on her mind. You'd think she'd be used to having so much to worry about by now. But no, it kept getting more and more and more complicated by the second.  
  
'Let's see... It all started when I got that phone call... That I heard that my mother was dead...' Hastily, she turned her thoughts to something different. 'Then Taichi tried to ask me out... He tried to ask me out! Why did I say no? I thought it would only worsen things if I did... Well, look how it turned out because I didn't! He could've helped me... But I said no and rejected him for no reason... And then he had to take it all out on Mama... He didn't know -- but he still had no right! No one should say that about someone's parents! ...But I...but I used to...   
  
'Am I being too unfair to him? I ignored him then, no matter what he did... So Yamato had to come to me, to talk, or so I thought... Was it me? He told me to give Taichi a chance, and all of a sudden, we were kissing! I was the one who did it... I said I loved him; I did it all! He was just too nice to do anything about it...or was he? Did he want that as much as I did? But why? I love Taichi! And -- and -- well, we should be even now, then.' She gave a satisfied nod, and kept walking.  
  
'So why doesn't he think we are?'  
  
Taichi hadn't taken what he saw very lightly. Before Yamato or Sora could do a thing, he ran off as fast as he could. When Taichi was running full speed, the only way you could catch up to him was with a car. Right when she and Yamato pulled apart, and Yamato noticed Taichi, he speeded away... Sora didn't even get to see the expression on his face. And she didn't think she wanted to.  
  
It seemed almost natural at first for him to not want to talk to her or Yamato. Of course he wouldn't be able to face either of them. He loved Sora so much -- maybe too much -- and Yamato was his best friend and had known that for years... So why would he continue his pursuit after Sora? The pesky phone calls stopped, he never tried to come by her house, he never talked to her, avoided her at all costs at school, and in the unlikely occasion that they managed to be somewhat near each other, he'd inch away without another thought. It was avoidance, the same thing she had done to him. But she kept thinking of it as him being a wimp unable to deal with his situation... So if he, the courageous one, was a wimp, what had she been?  
  
Much time didn't have to pass for her to hate the eerie silence instead of the ringing phone. She yearned for him to call...for anything; the homework, how she was doing lately, just to say 'hi...' Not a chance. She really, truly missed him. Had she been wrong to think she could just trash all her love for Taichi and then transfer it to Yamato? Was she even really in love with him?  
  
This took even more thinking. Was it really love? And if it was, why didn't she know? How could she still be in love with Taichi, even after what he did? Too many questions raced through her head. She struggled to clear them all away, clutching at her aching head. Too many questions, worries, thoughts... She needed rest.  
  
Ice cream! She noticed the sign right in front of her, and it only just hit her how far she had walked. Wow, she was on the other side of town, and startlingly close...startlingly close to Taichi's house...  
  
"No," she said firmly to herself. "I'm getting ice cream, getting ice cream..." She pushed the door open and walked up to the counter.  
  
"Can I help you?" the worker asked.  
  
"Oh, yes, sure. I'll have... A double scoop of--" '--of mint chocolate chip and very berry strawberry in a waffle cone...' It was what she always ordered, for as long as she could remember. Suddenly, she had the urge to try to something new, get something else, something different.... She paused, glancing at all the flavors. "A vanilla milkshake...no, maybe a banana split. Ooh, a hot fudge sundae would be wonderful, but -- hmmm... Wow, I've never tried that flavor before... Ummm..." Her head only started spinning more.  
  
"Hello? What will you have, Miss? Miss?" the man asked curiously.  
  
"Sorry!" she said quickly. In the end, she got rid of all her confusion in her mind and ordered a simple two-scoop waffle cone with mint chocolate chip and very berry strawberry. It was what she first thought of ordering... It was what she always ordered... Why did it take her so long just to pick it, if it was what she always knew she wanted?... The situation seemed very familiar...  
  
The man handed her the cone, she paid for it, and once she had the ice cream with her, she could hardly think of anything else but eating it all up. That was until she saw who was sitting alone at a booth, swirling ice cream around in a cup with his pink plastic spoon. She hesitated...and then gathered her courage to walk over to him.  
  
"Hi," she said quietly, but he didn't even look up or acknowledge her presence. "Can I -- can I sit here?"  
  
"Sure," he said, which surprised her. With a delighted smile, and scooted into the bench opposite of him. For a brief second, he made eye contact with her. "I was just leaving." Then he stood up, holding his ice cream in his fist so tightly that the cup crushed, getting ice cream all over himself, and he tossed it in the trash can perfectly.  
  
"Taichi..." she said helplessly. And he hadn't even finished his ice cream...  
  
***  
  
"'I turn around, I can't see what's behind me'-- No, no, no, no, NO!" Yamato said furiously, resisting the urge to take his bass and bring it crashing down on every single member of his band. And it was a new bass, too... His dad had actually given him money to buy a brand new bass instead of trying hopelessly to repair the humongous crack running down his old one... And now he couldn't think of anything but cracking someone's skull with the new one.  
  
The guys glared back at him, unmistakably as angry with him as he was sick and fed up with them. "What is it now?" the drummer demanded.  
  
"You!" Yamato replied. "How hard is it to play that rhythm, huh? We've been practicing this song for years, and now all of a sudden, a week before our biggest concert ever, you can't even play it. *I* can practically play this, and I have no clue how to play the drums! We should know this song by heart, but you can't play the right rhythms!" He then glared at every other person and picked them off one by one. He pointed at the guy on electric guitar. "Let's see... You're squinting at your music and playing like this is the first time you've ever seen it in your life! And you! You're supposed to be backing me up on vocals, but you're singing like you've got laryngitis!"  
  
"I do have laryngitis, you dumbass," he retorted in a hushed, croaky voice. "I told you, but no, I had to come... What's the matter with you?"  
  
"Yeah, you're being a total control freak, Yamato!"  
  
"Yeah, well, this is only the biggest gig in our lives!" he shouted. "And we're gonna make total fools of ourselves in front of thousands -- yes, you heard me -- literally tons of thousands of people!" He kicked his microphone stand down, and then slumped onto a wooden crate used as a chair. He dropped his blonde head into his hands and sighed heavily. "We're so screwed..."  
  
"We can pull this all together in a week if you'd stop dictating and started encouraging and helping us, instead of listing every tiny mistake we made and not trying to actually fix it," the guitarist snapped.  
  
"You fix it!" Yamato said in another sudden outburst. "We're beyond fixing. We aren't supposed to be fixing, this should have been done weeks ago! We're supposed to be polishing; glazing over what's already perfect and making it more perfect!"  
  
"It can't ever be perfect. Nothing is perfect. Perfection is just an empty word."  
  
He looked up slowly, hearing such familiar words... He had instantly recognized the voice, but he must have been hearing things... "Sora?"  
  
Sora stood there, casually leaning against the wall. "I was passing by and I heard shouting. Considering you're not a heavy metal group or anything like that, I figured something was wrong."  
  
"Of course it's wrong! Everything in my life is wrong!" he groaned. "And why are you here; I thought you stopped talking to me ever since...since...yeah."  
  
She nodded. "I just...just wanted to see how you were. I saw Taichi this afternoon."  
  
"And?"  
  
"Nothing. He walked off," she replied. "I just -- I just wanted to know if you had talked to him lately."  
  
"Are you kidding? Me talk to Taichi? Taichi talk to me? Taichi wouldn't even get a peek at the biggest, closest, best soccer championship game in history, if I were standing anywhere near the direction." Yamato traced his finger against the shiny surface of his new bass. "If it's any consolation, he hates me a lot more than he hates you."  
  
"Yeah, well, I hate us too," Sora remarked.  
  
"So why are you here?" he asked once again.  
  
"To see if we could somehow patch it up...or something." She shoved her hands in her pockets and squirmed uneasily. "But you know...it's kind of clear right now that...that..."  
  
"That?"  
  
"That our situation is beyond fixing," she finished and walked away.  
  
"Why does that sound familiar?" their drummer said with a snarl.  
  
Yamato stood up and looked at all his band mates with his blue eyes, in which all the ice had melted away from. "I'm...I'm sorry about everything I said... I shouldn't be so hard on you guys--"  
  
"But you're right," their guitarist claimed. "We've got our biggest show to pull off, and we're nowhere near being ready."  
  
"We've just got to work harder, is all," he muttered. "We can do it, we'll just have to give 110%. So let's take this from the top again." They started playing, and it sounded a whole lot better than it did earlier. Maybe his little pep talk did some good, or his harsh words finally had their impact, but whatever it was, it was a start. But Yamato still couldn't shake his feelings for the concert. 'I have a bad feeling about this...'  
  
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"Hold up, hold up," Miyako said suddenly. "I've got a confession to make."  
  
The three girls stared at her. "What is it?"  
  
"Well, Sora, you've come to the part about the concert... I've really, really got to tell you something."  
  
"Can it wait?" Mimi asked impatiently. "I want to hear all about Yamato's big concert. He didn't tell me a thing about it!"  
  
Sora, Miyako, and Hikari all looked away. "I don't wonder why..." Hikari said softly. "Sora, just tell the story then."  
  
"But--!" Miyako protested.  
  
Mimi looked her in the eye. "It can wait. I really want to hear this story!"  
  
Miyako sighed and hung her head in defeat, and Sora picked up where she left off with her story.  
  
"So it was finally the big day of the concert... The Teenage Wolves had been preparing non-stop and had just been constantly practicing and preparing, until they were so worn out that they fell asleep using their instrument cases as pillows. They had no other life than doing the best they could to be close to spotless perfect when they performed. Everything seemed perfect...but on the real day, everything started to go wrong..."  
  
"Yeah, first the drummer couldn't find his drumsticks, and then --"  
  
"Excuse me," Sora said timidly. "Miyako, what are you doing?" Mimi and Hikari nodded, and looking at her and wondering the same thing.  
  
"Oh sorry," she said, sweat-dropping. "Well, you know how Koushiro and I help the Teenaged Wolves with their sound and all... I was just there to witness it all firsthand, and I don't know..."  
  
"You want to tell the story?" Hikari guessed, and she nodded. "Well, why not?"  
  
"Duh, because this is Sora's story here," Mimi said obviously.   
  
"My story has to do with Sora and Taichi and Yamato's story," Miyako said. "It has -everything- to do with the story. And I have a confession to make."  
  
"What is it?" Sora asked.  
  
Miyako looked down. "Okay, this may take a while, but trust me, it's really important. I found out about this whole situation when Taichi went to Koushiro and told him all about it. He had this plan, and it was really difficult, so Koushiro went to me for help, and then all of it started..."  
  
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Taichi dragged his feet into his room, threw his duffel bag against the wall, and slumped on his bed. His team had lost another game. It had been so disappointing, because this was one of the worst teams in the league. Taichi's team was supposed to have been the best. And it was a shut-out, 7 to 0.  
  
Maybe it was his entire fault. Those months ago, ever since his heart had been broken that way, he just hadn't been himself. He hadn't been playing soccer or acting at all like himself. Now he just wanted everything to be how it was before. He wished he could just turn back time and erase everything, or find some way to fix it in the present...or pure and simple. To get revenge.  
  
Fixing the situation seemed nearly impossible. But there were lots of ways to get revenge. That would still make him feel better. After all, he wanted nothing more than to see Sora, but mostly Yamato, to get what they deserved. Thinking a while, he realized he had hurt Sora enough, hadn't he? It was Yamato who deserved this!  
  
Who was supposed to have been his friend, on his side? Then who went to Sora and ended up kissing her? Yes, it was all Yamato's fault. Taichi thought of various ways of revenge -- ones that weren't so violent, perhaps. He looked to his calendar and studied it. A grin spread across his face as he realized what was scheduled for next Saturday.   
  
***  
  
"You want me to what?!" Koushiro asked in surprise.  
  
"I dunno, mess around with Yamato's concert, screw it up, and I've got this idea. Miyako and you synthesize and help with the Teenaged Wolves sound, right? Well couldn't you--" Taichi whispered something in his ear.  
  
"I couldn't do that!" he exclaimed. "First off, Yamato is our friend. Second of all, this is like their biggest concert so far. This performance just might make or break their careers, if there happens to be some recording exec. there. And most importantly, he's our friend!"  
  
"You don't know what he did," Taichi said in a low voice, with a tinge of bitterness.  
  
"Hey, I don't know what happened with you and Sora and Yamato, nor do I care. I just don't want to get myself in the middle of all this."  
  
"Come on, please? I need this, Iz!" he pleaded.  
  
Koushiro sighed, thinking about it for a long time. After a while, he decided. "Okay, I'll do it."  
  
"YES!" Taichi said excitedly.  
  
"But this stuff sounds kind of complicated," he told him. "I'm gonna need some help."  
  
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"And this is how I come in," Miyako explained.  
  
"But what's Taichi going to do?" Mimi asked, looking at the three other girls. "What's with the synthesizing stuff? What's his plan?"  
  
Miyako, Hikari, and Sora looked a little uncomfortable. "You'll find out," Hikari told her hesitantly. "Keep going, Miyako."  
  
+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^  
  
"Yeah, so on the concert, there's going to be a whole bunch of speakers," Miyako explained to the band. "There's some really big ones on each side, and then there'll be--"  
  
Koushiro popped his head into the studio. "Miyako, can I have a word with you?" He looked nervously at the band, especially Yamato, and struggled to avoid eye contact with him.  
  
"Sure," Miyako said cheerfully. She left the room, to let the Teenaged Wolves look at a blueprint of their stage. "What's up, Koushiro?"  
  
"I need your help."  
  
"Sure," she agreed. "With what?"  
  
"To sabotage the Teenaged Wolves concert," he said bluntly.  
  
"What?!" she cried out. "I can't sabotage--"  
  
Koushiro clamped his hand over her mouth, and she gagged and tried to wriggle free. "Shhh! They're right there!" he whispered fiercely. "Please, Miyako, hear me out. I can't do this alone." He let her go.  
  
"Why are you doing this anyway?" she demanded. "We're part of the crew!"  
  
"It's a favor for Taichi," he told her.  
  
"I can't do this, Koushiro. I've been working way too hard to screw it up on purpose--"  
  
"Listen, all we have to do is--" He whispered the plan in her ear.  
  
"But why?" she asked, puzzled.  
  
"It's a long story. I just need an answer now, yes or no?" he said impatiently.  
  
"Koushiro, I don't know..." she said unsurely. "I just don't think I can ruin this concer--mmmphrrm!"  
  
Koushiro had seen Yamato walking out of the room they had been in, and in a desperate attempt to stop Miyako from what she was saying, he did the first thing that popped into his head. Maybe it was stupid, maybe it was one of the smartest, bravest things he had ever done. Whatever it was, it was unexpected. He grabbed Miyako by the shoulders and kissed her as hard as he could.  
  
Yamato's eyes went wide. 'I think I should give them some privacy,' he thought, and went back.  
  
Koushiro noticed that he was gone, and he drew back from Miyako, gasping for air. "Whew, that was close," he said, wiping the sweat off his forehead.  
  
Miyako's eyelids flew open. "What was that for?" she asked breathlessly, staring at him in disbelief.  
  
"Just -- never mind. Will you do it?" he asked one more time.  
  
She looked into his eyes, still startled from the kiss. She just said her first reaction. "All right."  
  
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The girls all giggled and whooped and cheered.  
  
"I always knew there was something going on with you and Koushiro!" Mimi said proudly.  
  
Hikari threw a pillow at Miyako, glaring at her. "What about Ken?"  
  
Miyako blushed. "I -- I -- um --"  
  
The three girls stared at her expectantly, waiting for her answer... Did this mean she really didn't have a crush on Ken anymore? Did this mean that she had something going on with Koushiro? Which genius was it?  
  
"I -- I -- I --"  
  
"Well...?" Hikari asked.  
  
"Well, anyway, with the story..."  
  
"Hey!" all the girls cried indignantly, but she kept going.  
  
+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^  
  
The next day, Koushiro, Miyako, and Taichi all met at Koushiro's house to talk about their plan. Koushiro sat in front of his computer as usual, opening up the sound system program. Miyako sat on a chair backwards, resting her elbows on the back of it, and watching Koushiro. Taichi just sat on the bed, tossing darts at Koushiro's dartboard, on which Taichi had tacked a picture of Yamato.  
  
"Okay, I've got it!" Koushiro announced, just as the dart hit Yamato's picture squarely in his forehead.  
  
Taichi sat up. "Okay, what now?"  
  
"Well, you get the tape recorder," Miyako told him, "and you speak right into here--" she held up a small microphone-- "and it'll record it. Then we can fix up all the sound waves and stuff and make it sound like Yamato's voice. That's the most difficult part -- besides, of course, playing it at Yamato's concert."  
  
So Taichi gave his speech, trying his best to make his words sound like things Yamato would actually say. He even did a pretty good impression of his voice, but they still had to fix it up. After a very long, frustrating time, the three finally thought they had the perfect thing.  
  
Koushiro recorded it onto a tape, and then held it up triumphantly. "We've got it!"  
  
And so Phase One of their plan was accomplished. However, the Phase Two wouldn't be that easy...  
  
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Okay, so as usual, I babbled on so much that it took up an entire part. Don't worry, part 5 should be out soon -- and when I say soon, that means two months, minimum. Just kidding...I hope. Well, in part 5, you'll find out exactly what Taichi's plan was and how it completely ruins Yamato's concert. Hopefully it'll be the last part...or not. 


	5. The Teenaged Wolves Concert Disaster

Love or Hate? (Part 5)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: Just a quick note for anyone who doesn't like Kouyako: I just wrote that part in for my friend, Taigurl, because she likes it, and she's the one who gave me the idea for that and this part, so it's just a thanks. Personally, I like Kenyako too, but then again, once you think about it...I like Ioriyako, Kenyako, Kouyako, Koumi, just about everything, so...yeah. Anyway, if that part bothered you, sorry, but I can't please everyone. I'm still not sure if I'll go on to Kenyako or keep developing the Kouyako though. How about a vote? Anyway, whether it's Taiora or not will be my decision. After all, lots of people have been begging for Sorato... You'll find out in the last chapter.   
  
By the way, ying zero said something very interesting: "PLEASE make it be taiora, it would be so good! I know Tai isn't really evil...." Well, I never said he was 'evil,' he's just really desperate for revenge. If that's evil, then I guess he is, but you know if he really did become evil, that would be sweet! Well, enough babble -- here's part 5, or part 2 of 'Miyako Tells Her Tale,' pretty much.  
  
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That Friday night, the day before the big concert, Miyako was having second thoughts. She frantically paced back and forth in her bedroom, brushing her violet hair so much that she thought it would fall out, mumbling to herself the pros and cons. She still couldn't decide: ruin one of the most important moments of Yamato and his band's lives, or help out Taichi and Koushiro who were in desperate need of her help -- for a reason she truly didn't know.  
  
At the present moment, it was leaning to the side of burn the tape and let the concert go along smoothly. She had been working so hard to make it a success before Koushiro and Taichi came in and interfered. Why should she purposely ruin something she had wanted so much to pass along flawlessly?  
  
On the other hand, she wasn't wrecking the *entire* concert. It was just a short three minutes of it, just one song. It was just something Taichi needed to get off his chest. He seemed so genuinely hurt, even though she didn't know why he was feeling that way that she felt she had to help him out. But how would Yamato feel?  
  
Great. Back to Square 1. Miyako groaned and buried her head into her hands. If only someone could help her decide! She walked to her desk, rummaged through a drawer, and found what she was looking for. The tape on which they had recorded the Yamato speech. Cautiously, quietly, making sure no one would wake up, she inched to the living room.  
  
Her parents had fallen asleep on the sofa. A tiny fire was still burning in the fireplace; unsafe, obviously, but Miyako possibly needed it. Her eyes darted from the tape to the fireplace, one final time thinking over what she should do, who she should help out. Her grip tightened on the tape, and her hands shook. She shut her eyes and forced herself to reach a final decision. She did. Releasing her grip, she dropped the tape.  
  
***  
  
Ring-ring!  
  
Miyako's eyes snapped open, and she dashed to the phone. She picked it up, cleared her throat, and asked hastily, "Hello?"  
  
As she had suspected, it was Koushiro. "Miyako?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Well, the concert starts in about six hours. Are we still on?"  
  
Her brother, who had been listening to their conversation on another phone, misinterpreted their words. He slammed the phone down and stormed into Miyako's bedroom. "Miyako, do you have some secret boyfriend you're not telling us about?" he demanded.  
  
Miyako was startled by the suddenness. "Huh? What are you talking about?"  
  
"You've got a date with this boy to the concert, don't you?" he asked, his eyes glinting. "Don't you?"  
  
Miyako thought about what made him draw this conclusion. But she didn't understand. "What do you mean?" she repeated, with more annoyance to her tone. "Where'd you get this from?"  
  
"I -- well -- I -- er --" he stuttered.  
  
"Hello? I *work* at this concert," she said in a tone that made it sound like it had been so obvious.  
  
Her brother's eyes widened. "Oh, well I -- I'm sorry." He bowed his head and walked out of the room.  
  
Miyako started laughing, but Koushiro was confused. "What was that about?" he asked.  
  
She giggled. "I don't really think I know either."  
  
"Anyway, so..." he trailed off.  
  
Remembering what he was talking about, her laughter stopped. She thought of the tape... "Koushiro, last night I had so many second thoughts that it made my head spin. I was constantly changing my mind. I didn't know what to do. Did that happen to you?"  
  
"Yeah, sort of..."  
  
"Well, I was starting to go insane trying to make a decision like this. Then I told myself that I would either agree to do it, or I would burn the tape. I was standing right in front of the fireplace, making a final decision...and I -- I --" Miyako lost her voice.  
  
"Miyako? You what?" She didn't answer. "Hello? Hello? Hel--"  
  
With shaking hands, she pressed the 'Off' button on the phone, and then went back to bed, hoping everything would be all right when she woke up.  
  
***  
  
Ding-dong!  
  
Ding-dong!  
  
Koushiro waited at the door, twisting his hands, tapping one foot, and showing gestures of how impatient he was becoming by the second. He reached his finger out to press the doorbell one more time, when the door opened.  
  
Hikari answered the door. "Koushiro?" she asked in surprise, not having expected him.  
  
"Can I talk to Taichi?" he asked. The words, 'he's asleep,' were about to come out of her lips, but Koushiro interrupted her. "I know it's pretty early, but it's really, really urgent."  
  
"Well..." she said hesitantly. "All right. Come on in." She opened the door wider, and he stepped through. Hikari slowly closed the door and locked it. "Just wait here," she instructed. "I'll wake up Taichi. But I'll warn you, he's a little cranky when I wake him up."  
  
He nodded, thrusting his hands into his pockets. He waited, until he heard a loud commotion. It sounded like lots of pulling and tugging, sounds of resistance, Hikari's pleading voice, Taichi's grumpy mumblings, and a big fight. But in the end, Hikari won.  
  
Taichi stumbled into the room, his mass of his completely tousled, his eyes slightly bloodshot, his pajamas wrinkled. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. "Koushiro, what is it?" he asked. "You better have a good reason for waking me up like this."  
  
"I do," he replied. "This is so important, you have no idea--"  
  
"What could possibly be so important at six o'clock in the morning?" he demanded, obviously still grouchy from having been woken up so early.  
  
"I just talked to Miyako and--"  
  
"Yeah?" he cut in. "And what did Miyako say?"  
  
"Miyako told me something that could totally ruin your entire plan."  
  
"How?"  
  
"She burned the tape."  
  
Taichi stared at him in disbelief, occasionally blinking. What Koushiro had said wasn't even funny. He just kept on staring at him for a few more minutes, and Koushiro thought he was just going to explode. But he didn't. He burst out laughing. He laughed long and hard, and Koushiro just stood there, unmoving. "Man, Izzy, you really had me there! Wow, at first I thought you actually said that Miyako burned the tape!" He went on laughing hysterically.  
  
"She did," he said, not understand what was so funny.  
  
Taichi slapped him on the shoulder. "Yeah. Sure, Koushiro. I believe you." He kept laughing; laughing so hard his face went red and he couldn't breathe. Koushiro had a feeling he was losing his mind.  
  
"I'm telling you, I think she burned the tape!" Koushiro told Taichi again, a lot more firmly this time.  
  
The words finally hit Taichi. He abruptly stopped laughing. His face lost all of its color, becoming a pale, pale white. He could hardly breathe. "But -- but -- that was our only copy!" he choked out. He grabbed Koushiro by the shoulders and started shaking him. "Please, please, Koushiro. Tell me you're joking!"  
  
"I -- I can't," he said slowly. "Look, I'm sorry, Taichi, but..."  
  
"No," he said shaking his head. "No, this can't be happening..." He felt like crying and throwing up at the same time. "This ruins everything, and now my life is ruined again, instead of Yamato's..."  
  
"Why do you want to ruin Yamato's life anyway?" Koushiro suddenly asked. "I know I said I didn't care, but now I do. Please, tell me why this is so important to you."  
  
Taichi took a few deep breaths and calmed down. "Okay, here goes..."  
  
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"And it's basically the entire story Sora told us, from his point of view," Miyako told them.  
  
"Hey, Miyako?" Sora asked, speaking up after she had been quiet for a very long time.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Just get to the part about the concert," Sora said. "I still have some stuff to tell, and it's almost two o'clock in the morning, and I'm getting really tired and frustrated from thinking about this so much. So please, go on."  
  
"Yeah, I want to know why you guys are dreading this concert so much!" Mimi squealed. "What was Taichi's plan?"  
  
Miyako took a deep breath. "Here goes..."  
  
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Yamato stared at the piece of paper he had scribbled all over; bar lines, notes, things he had crossed out and fixed and revised and rewritten, until it came out to an actual song -- a huge mess, but nonetheless -- a song. It seemed perfect, or so he thought.  
  
He called all the guys in his band, who were starting to warm up. They gathered around him, staring at the paper he was holding in his hand.  
  
"Hey, I know this is kind of last minute, considering our concert is in an hour," he replied, "but I think I just came up with a new song."  
  
"Cool," the guy who played the keyboard said. "Are we gonna play it today?"  
  
He shrugged. "If we can get them to let us play it. Let me go talk to someone about this. Maybe we could squeeze this in. I mean, what does it matter if our song is a few minutes longer? Here, you guys can practice it." He handed them the paper and walked off, searching the backstage area for someone he could talk to.  
  
Everyone seemed way too busy. Whoever he tried to talk to, they just walked right by, talking to other people, giving orders. Finally the only person left to talk to was Miyako. She managed the sound.   
  
"Hey, Miyako!" he called, walking to her. "Do you think we can fit an extra song into our show?"  
  
She was taken by surprise. "Extra -- extra song?"  
  
"Yeah. Think we can?" he asked again, a little impatient.  
  
She thought about it for a while. "You're going to have to talk to the people higher up...but I suppose so. Have you practiced it a lot?"  
  
He nodded. "I've been writing it for weeks. The rest of the band can easily catch up. But what do you say. Do we have a chance?"  
  
She shrugged. "I guess I can ask Bob (lack of a better name here, people) if we can extend the concert a few minutes or something. Couldn't hurt."  
  
"Thanks, Miyako!" he called, running down the corridor back to the room where his band was practicing.  
  
'Extending the concert...' Miyako thought vaguely, and the thought of Taichi, Koushiro, the tape, the fire, flashed through her mind briefly, before she walked off.  
  
***  
  
The concert was about to start in a few minutes. Taichi sat in one of the back rows, and he couldn't stop fidgeting and squirming. Koushiro glanced over at him. "Don't bite your nails, it's bad for you."  
  
"Gee, sorry, *Mom*," he said sarcastically, and went back to being a complete wreck. He glanced back at Koushiro, though he was a little perturbed (big word! j/k) by the last comment. "Seriously, though...you think she burned it?"  
  
Koushiro sighed. "We went over this a million times. First off, I don't know. Second, we'll just have to wait and find out. And third, stop asking me, because reverting back to point one: I don't know."  
  
"Touchy, touchy," Taichi commented.  
  
Koushiro just rolled his eyes. "I'm tired. This thing has me just as stressed as you. I worked so hard on that tape; I can't believe she could just burn it like that! But we don't know that she did. Let's just wait and see."  
  
Taichi nodded, and then leaned forward anticipatingly in his seat as the lights in the audience dimmed, the ones onstage got brighter, and the show started.  
  
***  
  
"It's over now," Taichi said emotionlessly, glancing at his blue luminous watch. "The concert's about to be over once this song's done, and Miyako didn't play the tape. She burned it."  
  
The band finished the final bar of the song, ending with a huge bang. Everyone cheered and shouted, but they were a little sad that it was over. Just as people were getting up out of their seats, they sat back down.  
  
"Wait, wait, don't go just yet!" Yamato said to everyone. "Today we have a little surprise for everyone here."  
  
The audience liked that. They cheered so loudly that Taichi had to cover his ears with his hands.  
  
Yamato stepped up, grabbed the microphone off his stand, and walked to another side of the stage, as the lights became dimmer. "Well, a few weeks ago I was messing around with my bass and fumbling with words to try and make a song..." He held up a very wrinkled sheet of paper. "And here it is. It's really the first time I wrote any song like this, but in the past few months, something really confusing and emotional happened to me. And I...I just felt compelled to write something about how I was feeling. It was just a way to vent everything. So, here it is... But wait, before we start, I want to dedicate this to a few people... Taichi, I'm so sorry about everything, and I'm willing to bet this won't make anything better, but I just have to do this... Sora, wherever you are out there..."   
  
He paused and scanned the huge crowd of thousand expectant faces, looking for just one...as impossible as finding a needle in a haystack... But the spotlight went from Yamato to Sora, who was sitting in the audience looking confused. She looked to Hikari, who was sitting next to her, and they had a short talk.   
  
"What's this about?" she whispered, feeling subconscious. Hikari merely shrugged, focusing intently on Yamato, waiting to hear what he had to say.  
  
"Sora, I just want to tell you that despite everything, I really lov--" Suddenly, there was earsplitting feedback. Everyone covered their ears and winced, but it was over. This time, it was a recording.  
  
"I don't think I can take this anymore. I can't. I just can't do it. I can't pretend that I love Sora. I didn't mean to kiss her...it just sort of subconsciously happened. I didn't even want it to happen! I mean, if you think about it, it was all her fault anyway. And Taichi...he's the one who started all of this. He brought me into this whole entire mess. I want to say I'm sorry for the kiss, but I can't. Deep down inside, I know that none of this is my fault. If only those two could just get along. But I have to say, I really have nothing to do with it.   
  
"Sora... God, why did she have to kiss me? I didn't even *want* her to kiss me. Sure, she's my friend, but I could never do that! Kissing her was just so...so weird... I had to like spit once she left. I almost threw up. It was repulsive... She's my friend, but I could never like her that way! She's nice, yeah...but she's just really bland and boring, has absolutely no personality, and she's not even that pretty. (Sorry to Sora fans, I *used* to like her too!)  
  
"You know, like I said, this never would have happened if she just said yes to Taichi, or he asked earlier, or -- or something! But it sure as hell isn't my fault, and those two have got some major problems to work out. Not me. So I'm not taking any more of this shit. I'm through with Taichi, and especially Sora. And if she ever tries to kiss me again, I *will* throw up."  
  
The recording ended, and everyone gasped, disbelieving what he or she had just heard. That was one of the most cruel, insensitive things any of them had ever heard. Though Yamato was possibly the most shocked, Sora was too, and easily the most hurt by those words, of course.  
  
All the people in the place were staring directly at Sora, who was trying her best not to cry, but failing. Tears streamed down her cheeks.  
  
"Sora, I --" Yamato began helplessly, so shocked himself about what had just happened that he could hardly speak. "That wasn't me, I didn't --"  
  
"Just leave me alone, Yamato Ishida!" she yelled out, scrambling to her feet. "I hate you too!" And then she buried her face in her hands and ran off as fast as she could.  
  
"Seems like Sora hates just about everyone these days, doesn't she?" Koushiro murmured to himself. He turned to Taichi. "Is this how everything was supposed to go?"  
  
Taichi nodded, but there wasn't a grin on his face. In fact, it was rather opposite. "I know it's what I wanted to do, but I can't help feeling bad..."  
  
"Still, you're lucky Miyako didn't burn the tape," he reminded the downcast boy. "Speaking of Miyako, I'm gonna go off to find her and congratulate her on a job well done. Gonna come along?"  
  
"No thanks," Taichi said, absentmindedly waving his hand. "I think I'll go and find Sora. What I came to see is over, and as far as I'm concerned, I don't want to stay in this dump any longer."  
  
Koushiro nodded, and the two boys went off their separate ways, the spotlights following them. When they were gone, the lights all went back to Yamato and the Teenage Wolves onstage. The band members just stood there stock-still, unsure of what to do, and Yamato was slumped on his stool with his head in his hands. When the lights came back, he stood up.  
  
"Well...I guess this concert has died. I don't know what the hell that shit was, but I swear; that wasn't my song. Maybe I'll sing it some other time. So thanks for coming everyone... Sorry about that last part, but I'd say this went pretty well... We'll see you next time!"  
  
The lights immediately dimmed and the people in the audience quickly streamed out. It was empty in a matter of time, except Yamato, who still sat in his stool, staring down glumly at the sheet of music that he had never gotten to play. Frustrated, he crumpled it into a ball and threw it as far as he could into the audience. Then he sighed heavily, got up to his feet, and walked off to the back of the stage.  
  
But as he was heading off, he overhead a bit of conversation, and though he knew it was wrong, stopped and eavesdropped. It sounded like Koushiro and Miyako's voices.  
  
"So you didn't burn the tape!"  
  
'What tape?' Yamato thought suspiciously, and listened intently.  
  
"Actually, I did," Miyako said.  
  
"But -- then -- how--?" he stammered.  
  
"I knew I'd end up doing something like this, so I made an extra copy and told one of my sisters to hide it from me in case I tried destroying the original. You have no idea how stressed this made me."  
  
"Yeah, same here," Koushiro agreed. "I was going insane, but even more so when I thought you burned the tape. Glad you kept it though. I was feeling kinda uneasy, and Taichi too, but it's what he wanted to do, so mission accomplished, right?"  
  
"Yeah, I guess... But I feel so bad for Yamato," Miyako said guiltily. "His song looked really good. And Sora...she's only been confused and hurt more. Should we really have listened to Taichi?"  
  
"Might have been my greatest mistake ever... But didn't you get such a huge rush hearing something we put together played in front of all those people?" he asked.  
  
"Are you kidding? I was feeling so nervous I thought I'd pass out. And I'm still feeling that way now...for some reason, I feel like it's not done. Something else is going to happen, and it'll be bad, very bad... I don't know what, but I just can't shake the feeling that -- YAMATO!"  
  
Koushiro whipped around and saw Yamato coming out of the shadows, and standing there, looking angry and confused.  
  
"You--!" he began furiously.  
  
Miyako's eyes were wide and found she could hardly bring herself to speak. "Yamato, I -- I don't know what to say--"  
  
Koushiro looked from Miyako to Yamato, thinking about some way to avoid this situation, or at least run from it. He couldn't think of anything. "Can you say, uh oh?"  
  
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Dude, I realized something. I tend to end a lot of chapters with cliffhangers of like two people saying or doing something private, and then the exact person they don't want to hear, does. (I also noticed I've been saying 'dude' way too much, but that's pretty irrelevant right now.) Anyway, I'd love to say Part 6 will be out soon, but unfortunately, I can't give that promise. Look out for it though; Sora will finally confess to Taichi how she really feels... Will it be love or hate? You'll find out -- eventually! (P.S. Vote if you want Kouyako or Kenyako!) 


	6. Sora Admits Her Feelings

Love or Hate? (Part 6)  
By Firenze  
  
A/N: This is the longest chapter yet, about twice as long as the other chapters. I think it's unnecessarily longer than it should have been, because of all of the unneeded crap I added in here, but oh well. This is like the big finale thingy, I guess, so it's allowed to ramble on and on. Sora's final conclusion, though, doesn't come until after a very long time and a whole lot of junk. Oh yeah, about the voting process with Kenyako or Kouyako...the result is in there too. READ TO FIND OUT EVERYTHING!  
  
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Sora sighed deeply, sitting on the bench and kicking her heels against the throng underneath it. Her tears hadn't yet ceased and were still pouring as hard as ever. Why did everything bad have to happen to her?! Couldn't she, for once, be spared and have fun?  
  
"No, I guess not," she said bitterly to herself, blinking back a fresh wave of tears. "Taichi and Yamato and everyone just have to find new ways to make my life more of a living hell than it already is."  
  
"Not exactly..."  
  
She sniffed. "What do you want, Taichi? Haven't you caused enough damage already?"  
  
"Me?" he asked innocently as he could, but a little worriedly.  
  
"Yes, you... I thought I had made it clear I didn't want to talk to you ever again," she said, trying to get an edge to her voice, but it was kind of hard when she was sitting there blubbering.  
  
He gave a quick sigh of relief. 'So that's what it is... Good. For a minute there, I thought she knew...or does she?' He thought about her words and then came up with a response. "Those tons of messages you left on my answering machine don't agree."  
  
Only more tears came down. "Stupid Tai..." she mumbled, but she couldn't resist smiling.  
  
"Was that a smile?" Taichi asked with a grin, sitting down next to her.  
  
"No," she said angrily, crossing her arms and trying to sound tough again.  
  
"I think it was." Slowly and cautiously, he brought his hand up to her cheek, turning it to face him. "Aw, come on, get rid of that ugly scowl on your face." Since she wasn't resisting, he brought his other hand to the other side of her face and cupped her chin in his hands. He looked at her in her watery eyes, and then gently lifted his hands to bring her mouth up. It wasn't quite a smile, but it was opposite from a frown. Taichi let out a laugh. "Close enough, I suppose."  
  
Sora giggled a little, but the moment was gone again, and her anger returned. She furrowed her eyebrows, pushed Taichi's hands off her face, and scooted away. "Stop it. Leave me alone."  
  
"Why are you mad at me?" he asked.  
  
"Because...because I -- I --"  
  
"Because you're mad at Yamato, so you're taking it out on the world right now," he finished for her.  
  
"No," she said, fuming. Then she lightened up, and said softly, "...Yes." She was quiet, but then she suddenly looked up at Taichi. "Do you think Yamato meant all that stuff he said, or was that at a time when he was just blowing off steam?"  
  
"Either he was PMS-ing," Taichi joked, but Sora glared at him. "...Or not. Maybe he's just a total jerk, Sora. Haven't we always known this?"  
  
"But he isn't, really, deep down inside!" she protested, wiping away the tears from her eyes; one of the last, since the tears were finally beginning to let up.  
  
"No one's a total jerk deep down inside," he said quietly. "I'm glad you finally realized it. People do make mistakes, you know." Then without giving her another look, Taichi pushed himself up off the bench and walked away without another word.  
  
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Sora had returned to the story, since she told Miyako about a part she probably wouldn't have known; one that happened as Yamato's encounter with Miyako and Koushiro did. "And that's it... The first time I talked to Taichi in months ever since that horrible kiss."  
  
"But did you really like the kiss, Sora?" Mimi asked. "Tell the truth."  
  
"A little..." she confessed, looking guilty. "But I was vulnerable and desperate... And after all, according to Yamato -- or should I say, Taichi -- it's all my damn fault anyway, isn't it?"  
  
"Oh, come on, Sora!" Miyako said impatiently.  
  
"I can't even begin to count how many times people have said that to me lately," she said sullenly.  
  
"You know Taichi didn't really mean all that! He was just feeling really mad and he wanted to get back at Yamato by making you hate him too. And I'm sure Yamato doesn't feel that way either. He wrote a song about how much he loves you, for God's sakes."  
  
"I don't care," Sora replied stubbornly, crossing her arms. "I still hate them all. And don't think I'm not mad at you and Koushiro for what you guys did. I can't believe you helped that big dork."  
  
"You *still* haven't stopped hating Taichi?" Hikari said exasperatedly, rolling her eyes. "Even after telling this story and seeing it from his perspective?"  
  
"He's a big, stupid, dumb, insensitive jerk. I don't give a damn what he thinks."  
  
"You're so hardheaded sometimes, Sora," Mimi said, annoyed. "Stop acting like that; you know you always loved him anyway, no matter what the hell you say."  
  
"I'm not in the mood to talk about this anymore," she said, grabbing her feather pillow back and hugging it tightly. With that, the conversation was ended, even though Mimi's light brown eyes still burned with a flame to them. "Keep going on with your story, Miyako. I'm out of tales to tell, and I'd like to see if Yamato beats the living daylights out of you two."  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
Yamato tried to get himself to breathe calmly and evenly, but it was impossible. He sounded somewhat similar to an enraged bull. "You two better explain everything now," he told them rashly, clenching his fists until his knuckles turned white. "Now."  
  
"It was all Taichi!" Koushiro yelled out, breaking down. "This wasn't our idea at all! He came to us for help with all the technological mumbo jumbo. But he's the one who made the whole speech."  
  
"Oh, yes, that Oscar-worthy performance that has, in a few short minutes that was supposed to be devoted to my original song, ruined my life. Keep going."  
  
"What is there to talk about?" Miyako asked.  
  
"Let's put it this way: the more you keep talking and spilling everything you know, the more time you have until I'll consider if I should spare you..."  
  
Koushiro and Miyako let out huge sighs of relief, but Yamato wasn't done.  
  
"...or beat you both to a bloody pulp and hide all the evidence."  
  
They both gulped loudly. "Really, now," Miyako said. "You would never hurt your two frien--" She saw the deathly expression on Yamato's face, and he raised a clenched fist. "Uh, heh, heh...here's the story."  
  
"Taichi saw you and Sora kissing, and he was really sad and that stuff, but he was pissed like crazy. Of course, he chose to solve this matter in an -- *ahem* non-violent way." Yamato glared at Koushiro, who sweat-dropped and quickly kept going. "He wanted a way to get revenge on you, and making Sora hate you too sounded pretty appealing to him. He came up with the idea of making a recording of you talking shit, and then he planned to play it at your concert in front of everyone just to make it more humiliating."  
  
Koushiro, sweating like mad, found himself unable to continue, so Miyako picked up where he left off. "Of course, you know Taichi doesn't have the expertise or intelligence -- possibly the brain to accomplish such a task as this." She felt bad about saying those things about him, but it was mostly Taichi's fault (she didn't want to say all, because she had some responsibility by stupidly agreeing to it) they were in this situation, and sucking up to Yamato wouldn't be too bad.  
  
Her words got the reaction she had hoped for. Yamato grinned and even chuckled; unfortunately, it wasn't particularly cheerful sounding, but more of menacing.  
  
"So he first went to Koushiro, but he couldn't do it alone. He came to me; also because I help with the sound at your guys' concerts and everything. I had -- uhm...no choice but to agree." A bead of sweat dropped, as she remembered her kiss with Koushiro. "We made this recording of Taichi saying that speech, and went through an incredibly complicated procedure to tamper with the sound waves and everything to synthesize it into something of your voice. I'm not sure if we really had an accurate likeness, but Sora was convinced.  
  
"Anyway, *we* didn't want to hurt you. We had gone into this as a favor for a friend, not knowing why he even wanted to do this to you. It was really nothing personal. We just felt bad for the poor guy."  
  
Yamato scowled. "All that aside, you had no right to do that. You carried no grudge against me, so why would you be willing to get into the middle of this whole mess?"  
  
"Well, why did you get in the middle of Taichi and Sora's fight?" Koushiro asked unwisely.  
  
Yamato's eyes flared up. The normally gentle blue had become icy and piercing. "Don't even bring that up to me. And for your information, I interfered because I was trying to patch things up between them, *not* purposely make it more screwed up than this whole damn situation already is. Don't even compare our circumstances right now."  
  
"I'm sorry," Koushiro meekly said. "Truly, we are. About everything. I mean, we were stupid enough to listen to Taichi. Enough consequences result from that dumb decision as it is. Please...please just spare us."  
  
He rubbed his chin, feeling like a king having to make the decision of whether he should pardon someone or behead them. "I guess I'll go easy on you this time. I've got enough to worry about as it is, thanks to you two. But if anything like this ever happens again, you won't be so lucky," he said warningly. Then he softened. "Sorry , guys, I didn't mean to be all evil like that. But what you did seems almost unforgivable... Promise me you'll tell Sora that you were responsible for that speech, not me. Please?"  
  
"Done," Koushiro said, shaking hands with him.  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
"That's funny," Sora said. "And I didn't find out about this until tonight." She threw a dirty look at Miyako, who returned a sheepish expression.  
  
"Oops?" she said meekly.  
  
"Let me guess...it simply slipped your mind?"  
  
She nodded hesitantly.  
  
"It's all right, I suppose. I talked to Taichi again after that...he confessed to everything. I already knew about Koushiro and you helping in his little scheme. But I still don't know if I can forgive you."  
  
Mimi and Hikari groaned. "I hate to say this," Mimi said, "as I'm probably only rubbing salt into the wound, but...'come on, Sora!'"  
  
She rolled her eyes and then lightened up. "Okay, Miyako," she said, looking at her. "I forgive you for all the emotional distress you've caused me."  
  
"And Taichi?" Hikari prompted.  
  
"I suppose I'm not mad at him either," she admitted. The girls all smiled. "However --"  
  
Mimi looked up. "However?"  
  
"I still hate him."  
  
Everyone groaned frustratedly again.  
  
***  
  
"Hey," Miyako said suddenly to the other girls. "There's something I forgot to add in that story."  
  
"Yeah?" Hikari asked. "What?"  
  
"A little minor detail about Koushiro and I..." she said, blushing scarlet.  
  
"Minor? Let me guess, it ends with you two kissing and becoming a couple?" Mimi asked.  
  
She blushed and nodded.  
  
"Minor?!" all the girls exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, that's minor, and my story was about a little, tiny argument," Sora said sarcastically.  
  
"Tell us the story!" Hikari begged anticipatingly.  
  
"Okay..."  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
Yamato left, and the entire auditorium was empty, except for two people sitting together in the dark audience chairs. Koushiro and Miyako had just stayed there, talking about the plan, about Yamato, about Taichi and Sora's situation, and just about anything they thought of.  
  
But Miyako was sick of avoiding the topic that both of them had been trying to avoid. She stated plainly, while Koushiro was in the midst of explaining something about the Digital World, "Koushiro, I really want to talk to you about that kiss."  
  
He turned bright red. "Oh -- uh -- all right. What about it?" he asked nervously.  
  
"Why did you do it?"  
  
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Because...I saw Yamato coming and it was the only way to shut you up without seeming suspicious. I'm sorry, it was a no-time-to-think situation, and that was the first thing that popped into my head."  
  
"Why?" she prodded.  
  
"'Cause I...errr...well, I -- it just did," he told her lamely.  
  
"Is that all?"  
  
"Yes -- no -- yes."  
  
She tilted her head to one side. "Well, which is it?"  
  
"No," he confessed. "You want the truth, Miyako? I did it because I love you, but I didn't want to tell you, because I know you've always loved Ken, and of course you still do, and so I didn't want me getting into the middle of some triangle or anything, because I happen to know that Ken loves you back, and--" He had been saying that entire, long sentence quickly and without taking any breaths.  
  
"Koushiro, calm down. Stop!" Miyako said, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him until he shut up. "That's enough. Can I at least explain something?"  
  
He shut up and nodded, breathing heavily.  
  
"I -- well, I... When you kissed me, that got me to thinking. I started reevaluating everything I felt for you, because when you kissed me, I swear I saw fireworks. But one time, when Ken and I kissed -- yes, we kissed -- I didn't feel anything. In the end, I realized that it was you I really loved, even though I thought I loved Ken the whole time," she explained. She looked up at Koushiro and found his face startlingly close to hers. She nervously looked into his eyes and realized what he was going to do. He wanted to kiss her. So she leaned forward, and they did.  
  
When they pulled apart, Miyako was too out of breath to say anything, but Koushiro suddenly realized, "Wait -- if you thought you always loved Ken, but it turned out you loved me, do you think it could be that way for Sora and Taichi? What if she always thought she loved Taichi, but she really loved Yamato? What if their kiss had her reevaluating her feelings for him, and she found that it went deeper too?"  
  
"For Taichi's sake, I hope not," she answered.  
  
But then the two easily forgot about the whole complicated Yamato, Sora, Taichi triangle, and focused back on each other.  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
"Is it going to be like that, Sora?" Miyako asked.  
  
She just shrugged, and then figured out a quick way to get the attention off herself. "But what about you and Koushiro, huh?"  
  
It worked. Hikari and Mimi threw so many questions at Miyako that the three of them didn't have a chance to even remember what was going on with Sora. And that's exactly what she wanted.  
  
***  
  
Half an hour had passed, and the girls had gotten bored and gone onto other things. Mimi had removed the nail polish from her fingernails for the third time, and was having Hikari repaint them, with painstakingly detailed designs of hearts, flowers, stars, and other cute decorations, in a variety of pastel colors. Miyako found a tube of temporary hair color, and was highlighting her violent strands pink. And for the entire time, Sora had just sat on Mimi's window seat, doing nothing.  
  
She wasn't exactly looking out the window, even though she usually loved looking at stars. And she wasn't deeply thinking about anything. Just sitting there in a daze... She was tired from telling her story for so long. It had frustrated her, made her sad remembering everything, and had made her go through the entire emotional ordeal over again, the last thing she had ever wanted to do.  
  
"Are you ever going to tell us the rest of the story?" Hikari asked suddenly, only making Sora feel worse.  
  
Finally, she lost it. A tear trickled down her cheek, and she wasn't even all too sure the cause of it. Soon, she was sobbing and crying her heart out. The other girls didn't try to stop her, figuring she needed to get all these not-so-bottled emotions out and over with.  
  
When she stopped after a while, she looked at Hikari. "I think I've told enough as I can take," she said softly. "I'm sorry. But then again, there's not much more to the story than little details and technicalities. After all, it still, to this day, hasn't been resolved."  
  
"So resolve it!" Mimi encouraged her. "End this whole mess once and for all!"  
  
"As I was saying," Sora said, ruffled at being interrupted. "I'm exhausted, it's extremely early in the morning, and I better get some rest, if I'm going to finally do it tomorrow -- or later this afternoon, I should say. Goodnight -- er, good morning? -- whatever, everyone." And she crawled into her sleeping bag and quickly fell asleep.  
  
Whatever she was going to do later on, the other girls didn't get to find out.  
  
***  
  
Sora supposed she wasn't lucky enough to have a dreamless sleep this time. Though she wanted it over with, the situation continued to haunt her, even through her repose. She tossed and turns as memories ran through her mind; ones she had tried so hard to forget and never remember ever again.  
  
The memories started as far back since she and Taichi first met in preschool. Though she had briefly mentioned it at the beginning of the story, Sora never explained to the girls how the two met, and it was a most unusual story.  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
For the first day of preschool, all the young children were very nervous. So was their teacher. As they came into the classroom, she nervously twisted her fingers, having a strong feeling that something bad would happen that day as always. She had a history for having terrible incidents occur on the first day of school. One child ate so much paste that he passed out and had to taken to the poison control center. One child peed in a bottle of juice and everyone drank it. Another got his finger stuck in the electric pencil sharpener. And one year, the entire classroom was set on fire when the class baked a cake for so long that it burnt and set aflame, then spread to the carpet. Something was definitely going to happen this year.  
  
She examined each child carefully, trying to figure out their personalities just by appearance, but mostly trying to determine if they'd be the one to cause disaster. Once everyone was in the room and seated, she had it decided. It would be the one boy with a huge mass of brown hair on top of his head. She would have to keep an extra eye on him.  
  
The entire day went along pretty smoothly, but the teacher wasn't sure. The only things to have happened were that   
Five minutes were left of class, she noted, glancing at the clock on the wall. Still five minutes for something to go wrong...and nothing. She looked to the students, making their art project.  
  
The teacher had been feeling rather liberal that day, and let the students have free arts and crafts time. She supplied the construction paper, scissors, glue, feathers, glitter, crayons, markers, and whatever other things they would need. And they could make whatever they wanted. But maybe that wasn't such a good idea...  
  
She looked at the clock again. "It's almost time to go," she announced, "so clean up."  
  
Everyone burst out into an incredibly off-key song of, "Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere. Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share."  
  
"Yamato, you collect the glue," the teacher instructed. "Hatsuna, you collect the markers. Mimi (I know she's a year younger than them, but who cares, it's preschool), collect the scissors. Sora, please collect the trash..."  
  
Suddenly, there was a long, earsplitting shriek. The teacher's heart nearly stopped. Just as she thought, something terrible had happened. She hastened to the source of the scream, which came from Mimi. What she saw made her nearly faint.  
  
There was a pile of light brown hair on the floor. Taichi, holding a pair of scissors in his hand, was attempting to cut off all of the young girl's hair, and had already achieved a large amount of it.  
  
"TAICHI!" the teacher yelled. "Put those scissors down!"  
  
"It's her fault," he said defiantly, "for making fun of *my* hair. She said I needed a haircut, but she needs one worser than I do, so I said I'd cut her hair right now. And that's what I did."  
  
"Go sit in the corner," the teacher said fuming, pointing at a stool in the corner. "Stay there until everyone leaves, and then I want to have a talk with you. In fact...I know it's early, but everyone dismissed!"  
  
"I'll help finish cleaning, sensei," Sora, a shy, quiet girl, volunteered.  
  
"How nice of you, Sora," she said in delight. "That would be very much appreciated." Sora went off, and then the teacher turned back to Taichi. "You could take an example from Miss Takenouchi," she said firmly. "How could you cut Mimi's hair? That'll take forever to grow back. I want you to clean up all that hair, and tomorrow, you are to give a sincere apology to Mimi in front of the entire class."  
  
"But I'm not sorry!" he cried. "She got what she deserved."  
  
"Taichi," she said with a stern tone. "I said, you will give Mimi a *sincere* apology. So you better be sorry by tomorrow. And if you don't...you'll have to kiss her."  
  
"EWWW!" Taichi squealed, scrunching up his face like he had eaten a lemon. "But she's a *girl* and she's got cooties!"  
  
"And that's why you'll apologize. I think that's done with. By the way, I'll have to have a parent-teacher conference with your parents and the Tachikawas. You can repeat you apology to her parents too, who I'm sure will be mortified by the sight of their daughter, whom you have just given a crew cut."  
  
Taichi rolled his eyes. "Fine then. Can I go?"  
  
She cocked her head to the side and thought about it. "I don't know, do you think you've been punished enough?"  
  
He nodded.  
  
"I don't know..." she said doubtfully. "Hmmm...this is a tough one. Sora!" she called. "I'll need your help. Do you think Taichi deserves more punishment?"  
  
Sora stopped cleaning and paused, pondering that. She looked at Taichi, thought about Mimi, and made up her mind. "Yes."  
  
"*What?!*" he screeched.  
  
"Well, let's see...what else can I do to make you truly sorry? I can make you clean up the classroom everyday after school. I can make you do massive homework assignments. I'll take away your recesses, and nap time will be an extra reading time for you. I *can* make you kiss Mimi... Why not all of them?"  
  
***  
  
Taichi groaned and grumbled and kicked rocks, pebbles, and anything that came across his path on the sidewalk, as he walked home in a rage. "Stupid Mimi, and stupid teacher, and stupid Sora..."  
  
"That isn't very nice."  
  
He turned around, a scowl on his face. "Oh, it's you. What do you want?" he demanded.  
  
"To say sorry about adding onto your punishment. Unlike you," Sora added, "I can give apologies and really mean them."  
  
He just grimaced again. "Leave me alone."  
  
"Well, I missed the bus for cleaning up. And so you're the only person here. I'm not allowed to walk alone," she replied.  
  
"Find someone else."  
  
"Stupid Taichi..." she said, shaking her head. "I just said you're the only person here."  
  
"I don't care," he said shortly. "Walk with me then, but don't say anything."  
  
"My, you're grouchy," Sora commented. "No wonder Mimi made fun of your hair."  
  
"Hey!" he cried indignantly.  
  
"But I'm sure you're really not this bad," she continued on, not listening to what he said. "I think everyone has a good side. You do too. But everyone also has a bad side. Today your bad side is just stronger."  
  
"You don't shut up, do you?"  
  
She still paid no attention. "I'm sure you're nice. And unlike Mimi, I happen to like your hair. And I bet we probably have tons in common, and we'll end up being best friends."  
  
"You wish," Taichi spat out.  
  
She shrugged. "Your choice. Well goodbye, Taichi!" she said cheerfully, skipping off.  
  
"Wait!" he cried, running after her.  
  
"I thought you didn't want to talk or walk with me," she reminded him.  
  
"I'm not allowed to walk by myself either," he admitted nervously.  
  
Sora smiled. "Look, there's one thing in common already!"  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
Then the dream skipped a few years, after the two of them had moved from Highton View Terrace to Odaiba. And then it went to soccer camp...  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
Taichi pressed his face against the window, staring at the landscape as it whizzed by. Suddenly, the car came to a stop. "We're here!" he cried excitedly to Sora.  
  
She bounced up and down in her seat. "I can't wait!"  
  
The two friends scrambled out of the car and ran to the trunk, struggling to pull out their heavy duffel bags.  
  
Mrs. Yagami poked her head out the window. "Bye, Taichi, be careful sweetie! Bye Sora!"  
  
"Bye, Mrs. Yagami!" Sora said, waving. "Thanks for the ride!"  
  
"Bye, Mom," Taichi said, and quickly grabbed the handle to shut the car door.  
  
"Not so fast, Mr.!" Mrs. Yagami said. "Kiss your mother goodbye, first."  
  
"Awww, Mom..." he groaned. He looked back at Sora, who giggled, and his cheeks went pink. He leaned over and gave his mother a quick kiss on the cheek. "See ya later, Mom," he said, trying to hide his flushed face. "I hate when she does that," he said to Sora. "It's so embarrassing."  
  
"At least you get along with your mom," Sora told him. "I got in the worst fight with my mom right before I left. It's terrible; she still treats me like I'm two!"  
  
"No offense, but I don't really like your mom either," Taichi said.  
  
"None taken," she replied. "After all, you have a perfectly good reason for feeling that way. I mean, *I* feel that way! I'd never hold it against you!"  
  
^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+^+  
  
Sora woke up quickly and sat up. 'I don't ever remember saying that!' She hung her head and then said guiltily, "But I bet anything Taichi does." And so she decided. 'It's final. I'm finally going to apologize to Taichi for *everything*. Hopefully he'll accept it. I've been so stupid not to apologize for this long. I'm so stupid...'  
  
She sighed and slumped back in her sleeping bag, her head sinking into her soft pillow. 'And I'm going to do it later today, I swear. Just like I told Mimi, Hikari, and Miyako I would."  
  
***  
  
Sunlight streamed into Mimi's bedroom through a crack in the curtains. It reached Mimi's eyes, and she blinked and awoke. Sitting up in her bed, she yawned, stretched, rubbed her eyes, and woke herself up. Then she checked to see if her other friends were awake yet.  
  
Miyako, who had gone to sleep on Mimi's window seat, had rolled around in her sleep and fell off. She lay on the floor, tangled in her blankets, still tossing and turning and lightly snoring. Hikari was sleeping angelically in her pink angel sleeping bag. But something was odd...Sora wasn't there.  
  
Her sleeping bag was missing, along with her bag and all her things. Had she just got up and left? Then Mimi spotted something on the floor where Sora had been sleeping. It was a piece of stationary paper. Mimi crawled off her bed and picked it up. It read:  
  
"'Mimi --  
  
'I'm sorry for leaving so early before you all woke up, but I had to. There's just something very important I had to do. Anyway, I had a really great time at your party (believe it or not)! We should do it again sometime. Sorry again --  
  
'Sora'"  
  
"That's weird," Mimi said, placing the paper on her desk. "What could be so important that she had to leave so soon?" She looked at the clock. Sora had slept first and woke up first. Mimi didn't know exactly when she left, but she couldn't have had more than five hours of sleep. Mimi thought about it again and again; what could possibly be so urgent that she just went without even waking them?  
  
All of a sudden, it hit her. Her eyes went wide and she was so excited she couldn't contain herself. She shook Miyako awake, and gently woke Hikari up.  
  
"What is it?" Miyako asked crankily, rubbing her eyes and putting on her glasses.  
  
"It's Sora!" Mimi told the two girls breathlessly. "She's gone to tell Taichi how she really feels about him!"  
  
***  
  
'[Mr. Yagami:] "Hello, you've reached the Yagami residence. Either we're not home, not able to answer the phone (most likely of laziness), we're asleep, or we've had to rush to the poison control center because of Mrs. Yagami's cooking." *Sheepish laughing*  
  
[Voice sounds vague and distant] "Honey, I was joking, really -- I --"  
  
[Mrs. Yagami:] "No, that is NOT the case. Anyway, leave a message after the beep and we'll call you back as soon as we can."  
  
[Taichi:] "BEEP!" *Brief silence, then laughter*  
  
[Hikari:] "Taichi!"  
  
[Taichi:] "Just kidding, just kidding."   
  
Real *BEEP!*'  
  
Sora couldn't help giggling from their answering machine message; she did every single time she heard it. They just sounded like their family was having so much fun. Then she remembered what she was calling for, and instantly stopped.   
"Hello, this is Sora, and I'm calling for Taichi. Taichi, call me back as soon as you can, or meet me at the park today at noon. ...Bye." Then she hung up.  
  
After that, she slumped onto her couch and sighed, dropping her head into her hands. She didn't think she was ready to do this...  
  
***  
  
Though Taichi had heard the message the first time when Sora called, he pressed the button on the answering machine and listened to her message again. "'Hello, this is Sora...'" He listened to it again and tried to make up his mind. His fingers were only a few centimeters away from the phone. Should he call her? Or should he just wait and meet her at the park. Why was it so hard to make a decision as simple as this?  
  
***  
  
Ring-ring!  
  
Sora jumped up. She was so exhausted from her lack of sleep at Mimi's slumber party that she had drifted off on the couch without knowing it. The phone rang a few more times, and finally awake, she dashed to answer. It had to be Taichi, it had to be!  
  
Ring-ri--  
  
She picked up the received. "Hello?"  
  
"Hi, Sora! Where'd you go?"  
  
Her spirits drooped. It wasn't Taichi, but Mimi. Not that it was a bad thing, but she had been so looking forward to his call. "Oh, hi, Mimi!" she replied, trying her best to sound enthusiastic, but it came out half-heartedly.  
  
Mimi recognized the sadness in her voice. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing--" Sora began, but suddenly, she couldn't lie anymore. "I called Taichi," she admitted timidly.  
  
"Really, what happened?" Mimi asked eagerly. "Did you apologize? Did you tell him you loved him?"  
  
"I didn't get to talk to him," she replied sadly. "Only his answering machine. I was hoping that it was him who called when the phone rang. No offense or anything. I just...I do want to tell him how I feel. But how are you so sure that it's love?"  
  
"Well..." Mimi said slowly. "What else could it be?"  
  
There was a mysterious pause.   
  
"Well?" she asked again.  
  
"Bye, Mimi," Sora said finally, and hung up the phone.  
  
Mimi stared at her phone and looked to Miyako and Hikari. "She just hung up!"  
  
"Well, what did she say?" Miyako prompted.  
  
"Nothing..." Mimi trailed off. "She asked how I was so sure it wasn't love, and I said, 'what else could it be?' then she hung up. But seriously...what else could she feel for Taichi?"  
  
Hikari, Miyako, and Mimi all looked at each other with knowing looks, and the three replied simultaneously, "Hate."  
  
***  
  
Sora impatiently looked at her watch again. 12:16. Hardly a minute had passed since she had last looked at her watch, even if it felt like an eternity had gone by. Where was Taichi?!?! He was already sixteen minutes late!  
  
Then the thought finally occurred to her: what if he purposely didn't want to show up?  
  
She covered her face with her hands, and after a while, she sighed and got up. Then she saw someone coming out of the shadows. Was it finally Taichi?  
  
No. It was only some person who looked like Yamato -- wait, that *was* Yamato!  
  
"Yamato?" she called out, and he looked at her.  
  
He stared at her, amazed that she was even talking to him. He said flatly, "Sora, I thought you hated me."  
  
"No, I don't..." she said. "Taichi admitted that he was the one who did that whole speech thing at the concert. He was supposed to meet me here so I could forgive him -- and apologize for everything that's happened between us."  
  
"So you don't hate him anymore?" His expression was unreadable, and Sora couldn't tell whether he was happy or sad.  
  
She just shrugged. "I just said I was going to apologize."  
  
"Oh." He was quiet, and then after a while he looked up and asked, "But do you love him?"  
  
"No, I--"  
  
"So that's it, huh? You called me to come here just to tell me that you weren't in love with me?"  
  
Yamato and Sora whipped around saw Taichi standing there with his hands in his pockets, looking down at the ground, and kicking up weeds and dirt with his shoe. Sora didn't know what to say to him.  
  
"All this waiting for months," Taichi said to himself, "all these arguments, fights, backstabbing and betrayal, kisses, schemes, mistakes -- all this was to end by finding me out that you don't love me? That's just fantastic. All this stupid shit I went through for these months was for nothing! Nothing at all." He scoffed and furiously turned around and started walking back the way he came.  
  
"It's not nothing!" Sora called after him. "I mean...I'm sorry for everything I did, and I forgive you for everything you did, which is already more than I should be doing. And we're not nothing at all... I don't hate you!"  
  
He stopped and turned around. "But you don't love me," he muttered resentfully.  
  
"Well, love is a really strong thing, Taichi," she said quietly. "And it's not like I *never* loved you."  
  
"You did?" he asked, his jaw dropping.  
  
"Of course! God, I loved you for the longest time. The only reason I ever stopped is because I lost my trust and faith in you when all of this stuff started." Then she paused, thinking, and then realized, "But why does it have to be love or hate? Both are really big extremes. Couldn't there be an in-between?"  
  
"You mean...friends?" he asked despondently.  
  
She nodded. "Best friends. That's not bad, is it?" she asked timidly.  
  
"No, not at all... That's great." But he sounded unenthusiastic, and a frown was still present on his face.  
  
Sora wrapped her arms around him and gave him a hug. "Sorry for everything that happened."  
  
"I'm sorry too," he said, putting his arms tightly around her waist. They stayed in each other's arms for a long time, and Yamato eventually went away to give them more privacy. After the long period of silence, Taichi said softly, "Friends?"  
  
"Yup," Sora said, hugging him more tightly, "not love or hate. Just friends." 


End file.
